


Initiative Rolled

by DnDOtaku



Series: Tales of Dungeons and Dragons [1]
Category: Dungeons & Dragons (Roleplaying Game), Dungeons & Dragons - All Media Types, 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: Adopted Children, Adopted Sibling Relationship, Canon-Typical Violence, Culture Shock, Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition, Dungeons & Dragons References, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Found Family, Gen, Healer Midoriya Izuku, Hurt/Comfort, Loss of Faith, Loss of Powers, Magic, Magic Gone Wrong, Midoriya Izuku Does Not Have One for All Quirk, Midoriya Izuku Has PTSD - Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Midoriya Izuku Has a Quirk, Midoriya Izuku has a different name, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Time Travel, new identities
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-14
Updated: 2021-03-03
Packaged: 2021-03-08 23:55:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 24,272
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27015361
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DnDOtaku/pseuds/DnDOtaku
Summary: The six slowly stalked into the cavern. Their bodies, broken, battered, bruised but their eyes determined. They knew this was most likely a trap, yet they continued. They had to, to save the world. They were heros after all.______Trapped in a time and place not their own, six heros try to survive in a strange new world. Will they be able to find each other once more, or will they be lost forever?
Relationships: Midoriya Hisashi/Midoriya Inko, Midoriya Izuku & Eri, Midoriya Izuku & Toga Himiko, Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Series: Tales of Dungeons and Dragons [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1971619
Comments: 15
Kudos: 25





	1. Preface: The Wish

The six slowly stalked into the cavern. Their bodies, broken, battered, bruised but their eyes determined. They knew this was most likely a trap, yet they continued. They had to, to save the world. They were heros after all.

The cavern was large, vast and nearly empty. The lone occupant, a single white-haired man, the big bad, the one who had caused such trouble for the group and the lives of the common folk. A man working his way towards lichdom.

Ire'zuk the monk, a man blessed, eyes wide with innocence, filled with wisdom, and the fastest of the rag tag heros sprinted forward fists down by his side preparing to strike. He was lucky, able to land a strike to the back of the man's head before the man even turned around.

The rest of the group fanned out, sticking close to those who needed them most. The sorcerer, already working himself up into an excited frenzy, rushed forward and to the right behind Ire’zuk. The sorcerer’s chuckles already filling the cavern. The rogue had disappeared drinking a potion she had made herself, hiding in plain sight. Their more vulnerable wizard who stayed back to provide cover with his spells with the knight and cleric sticking close to his side.

Ire’zuk could hear shouts around him as the ambush was triggered. A dagger whizzed by his cheek as he landed another blow against the stomach of the Archmage. The breath wooshed out of the man in front of him as a strangled cry came from his right. He smiled with the knowledge that one of his friends was protecting him.

The rogue, who was about to attack Ire'zuk, collapsed to the ground clutching his throat, a dagger sticking out of their neck. A giggle could be heard before another rogue appeared out of thin air to quickly finish off her work. The recently appeared rogue smiled beneath her hood as her face took on the form of the person she just killed.

She licked the blade while looking towards the Archmage's other minions, who were about to strike her down.

"I will become you." She cooed, fingers caressing her blades, face warping into a monstrous visage. The intimidating aura she produced making those around her to quake in fear.

The few minions standing close to her turned to run only to be struck down by her blades: the rest swept up in a windstorm. Their screams drowned out by the now boisterous laughter of the group's storm sorcerer. His eyes wide in unfettered excitement.

"Let me see your burning passion for this man you call Master!" He hollered as he cast spell after spell. His magic pushing him around the battlefield like a ragdoll.

A light filled the room as the cleric allowed her wings to spread wide wrapping around the wizard in a protective manner as his face was screwed up in concentration. Her voice rang out to the group.

"Mirai has foreseen our victory my friends! Keep fighting!"

The sound of metal striking metal echoed behind Ire'zuk and he heard a deep chuckle.

"I've got you kid. I'll be the sentinel at your back. They won't make it past me." 

Ire’zuk could feel the cold wash around him as the Dragonborn knight loosened his breath weapon towards any oncoming danger.

A serene smile formed on his lips as his wrist bent in a strange direction pressing further into the Archmage's pressure-point. He could feel his own wings pressing against his spine begging for release. His blood sang in his ears, calling out to bring justice to those the man before him tortured and broke. Then a calm as the world around him seemed to fall away. He narrowed his eyes towards his opponent.

"I am sad to see you've chosen this path Sy-gar your skill could have been used for the betterment of mortal kind not evil."

The man standing before him laughed at every heavy blow delivered towards his person. As the final blow was struck Ire’zuk heard a laugh coming from somewhere within the cavern. The monk’s eyes widened as that laughter sounded eerily familiar and he looked around wildly trying to locate its source.

He could see the knight behind him shift as well his body tense and ready for any hidden attack, muscles bulging underneath his white scales and dark eyes narrowing in suspicion.

To his right the rogue continued to chase down the Archmage’s minions, both her and the sorcerer cackling in manic-like laughter as they worked together to kill or incapacitate. Neither seemed to notice the change in the atmosphere.

Mirai, the elven divination wizard cried out in panic as his eyes glowed in otherworldly light. Whatever he was seeing brought him to his knees, the cleric tried desperately to fend off attackers as her friend was taken over by something that looked like grief and shock. Her wings stretched out even further as she began to strike her enemies with a heavenly glow. Her staunch defence snapping the wizard out of his existential crisis as he began to weave some sort of spell out of Ire’zuk’s view.

Then he saw him, the man Ire’zuk was fighting, stepping out from behind a pillar. Healthy and looking well rested. His white hair looked combed back, styled, and his clothes looked recently pressed, as if he was ready for a party. He smirked as he looked at the exhausted group and he laughed once more.

“You think you’ve won, spawn of Illmater? Your naivete is amusing.”

The man in front of Ire’zuk crumbled, ruby dust covering his fists and water dripping between his fingers. The simulacrum melting before his eyes.

“While you wasted your time flailing in the darkness. I have done it! Now behold my magnum opus!”

The real Archmage raised his hands as he began to cast and two words fell from his lips...

“I WISH!”

The last thing Ire’zuk remembered was the feeling of falling and the feeling of his whole body being torn apart. He screamed in frustration, pain and sadness as he watched him and those he has come to call friends slowly turn to ash. The screams of his companions mingled with his own as his vision was blotted out. The last thing he heard was Mirai cry out.

“C-counter-Counterspell!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello my little dice goblins! 
> 
> Welcome to my first D&D related story ever! I hope you have enjoyed it so far. I set up a once a month chapter upload schedule and chapter 2 (technically chapter 1) will be ready to publish 11/1/20 at 7:00pm eastern. All future chapters will also be published on the first of every month at 7 pm eastern. 
> 
> Some post chapter notes! 
> 
> The pantheon that I am using is the Faerunian Pantheon! In fact one of the gods that I will be focusing on will be Illmater, he has been a major influence to a couple of the characters. 
> 
> If people are interested I'll post the stats on all characters who are part of this little adventuring party in the next chapter. 
> 
> I am also looking for a beta reader. If you are interested please send me a message. Please note I already have chapter 2 (chapter1) already written and proof read. 
> 
> Fun Fact! 
> 
> In the current campaign I am in right now I am playing a changling and they are the best race next to tieflings (though my opinion may change when I try dragonborn they look pretty cool)! 
> 
> I hope you have a wonderful day/night wherever you are! 
> 
> Your lovely,  
> DnD Otaku


	2. Chapter 1: Reborn

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _As he flew through the skies_   
>  _His wings bright crystal._   
>  _He looked for his love who called to him_   
>  _Far below in the tall dark blades_   
>  _That place he once called home_

Ire'zuk screamed when his lungs finally reformed. His body refused to do anything else after the millennium of agonizing silence. He finally stopped screaming when his ears reformed and he heard his own voice: that of a baby. The sound made him pause and he felt fear creep into his very being. It wasn’t until his nerves finally formed and he could feel properly again that true terror gripped him. 

He was trapped in some sort of vessel. The fit was so tight he was sure that at any moment he'd burst out, as nothing but a wiggling mass of nerves and what he can only assume was clone juice. He was imprisoned and his friends were in danger. 

Soon enough he needed to breathe and he began to push against the walls of his airtight prison, trying everything he could to escape. During his panicked escape attempt he felt his container rock and air filled the jar giving him a rush of joy. A large feminine hand reached in and gently pulled him out of his ceramic prison. 

He could barely hear the surprised coo above him and it took Ire'zuk a long time to focus his weak eyes towards the sound. He felt large hands upon his body once again and he was then wrapped up in a soft warmth. Two sets of eyes fell upon him, ice grey like the mountains of his old home and green, the same color of the woman he once loved. He felt safe and in his exhausted state fell promptly asleep. 

When he awoke the next day what he saw made him want to cry out in relief. In this new place, was a person he thought he'd never see again. Her blond hair was fair, hanging around her face limply and her red eyes danced in joy when she saw that he was awake. Despite it being a  _ very _ young version of her Ire'zuk recognized the motherly form of Himi, the group’s changeling rogue. 

She softly poked his chest and spoke in slow celestial.

" _ I... am... here... little...one _ ." 

The fear and desperation that he didn't realize he had slowly faded. He now knew that no matter what happened in this new life he was with someone who  _ knew _ him. 

Within the first year of his new life Ire’zuk began to speak his “parents” strange language. When he said his first complete sentence at the age of one and a half, he nearly gave his new family a heart attack. Soon after Himi also started talking to them in complete thought. 

Ire’zuk and Himi’s new family were extremely happy to have such intelligent children; what Inko and Hisashi Midoriya didn’t know was just how special their new children were. The children on the other hand were happy to be able to learn about their new world now that the language barrier was removed, they were not as pleased by their new forms. 

Ire’zuk, who his new family dubbed as “Izuku”, felt like he was constantly walking through mud. His limbs did not have the fluidity or discipline they once did, his chubby body mixed in with his weaker muscles made walking nearly impossible. However, he persisted and with the help of his “sister”, who his parents call “Himiko”, he was able to walk sooner than most children. Himi was in a similar boat. As a woman who was used to being both stealthy and quick on her feet being reduced to a crawling mess of limbs upset her greatly.    
  


At age four, he was introduced to this world’s magic known as quirks: abilities that are inherited at birth but manifest as a child grows. His neighbor, Katsuki Bakugou, whose arrogance at such a young age bothered Ire’zuk to no end, was expected to have an amazing quirk due to the fact that both his parents had abilities that when combined could cause an explosive outcome in their child's abilities. This was concerning to both Ire’zuk and Himi because they both knew if no one taught this child discipline he would run wild and his attitude would become tyrannical. 

Since Ire’zuk looked like his adoptive parents many of his caretakers believed he would receive an ability similar to theirs. However, they were wrong; in the old world most of his powers were earned through hard work and dedication to his craft. When he was in the old world he did have an ability given to him by his father, scars which matched his grandfather’s and a pair of wings. They were his curse and blessing, they were the reason people had hunted him in the old world. In this new world the scars, which surprisingly didn’t go away, were just considered another eccentricity. 

As others their age started to manifest their quirks, both Himi and Ire’zuk tried to use their old world abilities like quirks with moderate success. Himi, who used to be able to transform into anyone at will, seemed to only be able to do so if she consumed their blood first. She discovered that when she kissed Ire’zuk’s scraped knee to “make it better” as she joked. The moment the blood passed her lips she was shocked to discover herself looking at Ire’zuk with Ire’zuk’s own eyes, this sudden change scared many of the other children in the playground they were in. Then a few days later Ire’zuk grasped his mother’s hand when she was trying to clean a rather large cut and healed her. Of course, just like Himi there appeared to be a limit and Ire’zuk was slightly injured in the process of healing her injury. 

Over the next couple of years they both pushed their bodies hard in a futile attempt to regain their old skills. Nearly every attempt failed which inevitably ended in one of them going to the doctor to be healed. When Ire’zuk and Himi reached ages five and six respectively their parents finally had enough. They suggested that if the children were so interested in improving their self defence and evasiveness skills they go to classes instead of just putting themselves through unnecessary pain. Both children readily agreed to this and enrolled in both ninjitsu and parkour. 

It was also around this time that Ire’zuk was introduced to the concept of kindergarten. Himi, a year older than him in this life and the previous life had already experienced this new thing and was able to guide him on his first day. 

To say Ire’zuk felt lost was an understatement, this new world with its new excentricities made his life a jumbled mess. 

* * *

Thirteen years. Ire'zuk spent thirteen years in this new world: learning the ins and outs, the new rules and how to bend or change them. During this time he wrote all that he learned down in notebooks using the old tongue of his birth father. He found comfort in holding onto this piece of himself; it was like a lifeline as the world around him forced change. Near the beginning of his note-taking he wrote about the strangeness of the customs of this new world. From the small things like where to place his eating utensils (which were sticks, not the smithed metal forks and knives of his old world), to the importance of his education (despite being well educated, the monks of the monastery couldn't hold a candle to the educational demands of his new world parents), he wrote it all down as a reminder and journal. Himi borrowed it every now and then to add her own two cents, her entries mostly expressing her anger towards the new prejudice of her "quirk" and her hopeful progress in unlocking her old potential or the possible new potential. Later they both transitioned to writing about the people around them and their quirks. Most of it involved speculation about their strengths and weaknesses and which adventurers were better matchups in mock scenarios. 

These adventurers called themselves heros. A title that, when Ire'zuk heard it for the first time, made him laugh till his ribs hurt. He remembered his old group and how they fought tooth and nail to earn that title. To have such a prestigious thing reduced to something so trivial gave Ire'zuk an overwhelming sense of sadness and whiplash. He was, however, impressed by the skills of these heros and had to admit that despite it having the same significance as "blacksmith" or "farmer," these people were trained exceptionally well. He admired them and what they represented. A small part of him desired, the title, the prestige, but most of all, the satisfaction of having his hard work put to good use.

He also spent this time searching for those he lost; his oldest friend Mirai, his guide Zome, his rival Inasa, and most importantly his sister Eris. In the end, he felt his search was in vain for most of his results ended in dead ends or were non-existent. The closest he got was his friend Mirai, who had abilities and looks similar to one of this world’s pro heroes. Yet when he tried to request a visit from the man he was turned away, he was seven at the time.

Himi, who stayed by his side through thick and thin in the old world, desired to do the same in this one. Both of them pushed each other to better themselves. Despite their new limits they confessed to each other feeling a strength that wasn't there in their old world bodies. There were days when Ire'zuk believed this secret power was the gift his father blessed him with at birth. He swore on days like those that he could feel his wings moving underneath his skin begging to burst forth and let him fly but they never did. His back never tore, his brilliant yet bloodstained feathers never showed. 

Ire'zuk was ten when he earned his blackbelt. The repetition of knowledge imparted to him created no end of frustration. He was grateful for the return to the basics of his craft but he soon developed cabin fever. He started practicing his old style along with the new trying to find the right balance between the two. He never told his teacher how or where he learned his new fighting techniques. When he turned thirteen he felt his ki for the first time after years of practice and patience. It bubbled under his skin not knowing where to go or what to do until it burst forth from him one day during practice. When it disintegrated a chunk of the rubber dummy he was hitting he was not ashamed to say he cried. 

Himi also grew in power, after experimenting (secretly drinking her own blood, to her mother's horror, in an attempt to gain her old abilities ), and convincing her mother to help her train in medicine. She just turned fourteen when a new aspect of her abilities unlocked. She found after consuming anothers blood she could not only turn into that person but temporarily use their abilities. When she discovered this she was ecstatic. She cried in Ire'zuk's arms. Even though it was only a dirty reflection of her old world abilities, her tears of joy nearly broke her, just as it nearly broke Ire’zuk. 

It was early April when Ire'zuk's life changed once again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy November my little dice goblins!
> 
> Welcome back to Initiative Rolled! I know it is a sorta short chapter (only 1,800 I think) but I promise I have longer chapters coming.
> 
> As you all know I have set up a once a month chapter upload schedule and chapter 3 (technically chapter 2) will be ready to publish 12/1/20 no later than 7:00pm eastern. All future chapters will also be published on the first of every month around 7 pm eastern.
> 
> Some post chapter notes!
> 
> I got to excited and had to share this chapter as soon as I finished the last edits. I hope you guys are ok with me uploading this chapter somewhat earlier than expected. 
> 
> As I mentioned in my last chapter I am looking for a beta reader. If you are interested please message me on tumblr (I have one! I thought I would never tumbl but here I am). My tumblr name is dndotaku. 
> 
> The reason I started this story was because of a drawing I started a while back. I am not that great at art (I can draw an ok drawing in about 16 hours while a really good artist could do 10x better in half the time). I have the drawing up on tumblr right now and I will most likely be adding any future pictures of this story on there. Like I said I am not that great so please don't expect regular updates. 
> 
> I hope you have a wonderful day/night wherever you are!
> 
> Your lovely,  
> DnD Otaku


	3. Chapter 2: Routine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _The stars above called his name  
>  Their brilliance guiding him  
> Down, down, down below  
> To that place he once called home_

Chapter 2:

The morning started like any other for the Midorya siblings: with a mad dash across the rooftops to school, bookbags in hand and a protein bar clenched in their teeth. And like any other morning and as such there was a villain attack en route. 

The giant, whose appearance was that of a wereshark, roared out in frustration swinging his arms wildly in an attempt to scare the onlookers away. He looked around wildly, his shouts of "get back" and "don’t mess with me" falling on mostly deaf ears. 

The siblings sat on the edge of a building a block away from the train station with looks of defeat on their faces. 

"If only Mirai and sis were here..." Ire'zuk muttered "he'd've cast reduce on this man while sis cast hold person. You and I would then run in and pin him down while Zome would grab whatever this man stole and return it." 

Himi giggled, "You would have also tried to convert that man into a follower of Ilmater, and try to convince him to join your monastery." 

Ire'zuk turned up his nose, scrunching it in mock insult. "Convert a bad guy? Me? Never!" He turned his attention back to the giant shark-man and took out a notebook. Pencil hovering over the page as he watched the heroes work together to take down the villain. 

His eyes glowed slightly as he whispered in celestial, taking notes: 

_ "Konami Woods, being a man made out of wood it seems an appropriate name if I ever heard one... he appears to be very agile but could be susceptible to fire. He and Mirai would not get along, Mirai being a wizard who loves his fire spells. Other pro-heros like Endeavor would be a bad match-up as well."  _

Ire'zuk looked up.  _ "Do you think he could cut his limbs from his main body and grow them back? Like a tree pruned of dead branches? Perhaps..." _

"Izuku!"

The ex-adventurer looked over to Himi with a frown. "You know I don't like being called that." 

The changeling girl placed a hand on his arm, a soft smile on her face. "But you weren't listening. Look, we need to go before we are late." 

Ire'zuk sighed and put his notebook away and took a large bite from his protein bar before leaping onto the neighboring roof. Running past the train station Ire'zuk looked back feeling his limbs trembling from the adrenaline and shame. When feeling weak in this new form; his anger would rise. It wasn’t  _ fair _ , he was a  **_hero_ ** damnit! One of the chosen. Ire’zuk sighed, of course that is all part of the past, just like his wings and dreams. Something not even his closest friends knew. 

They just got started again when they heard a boy shouting in panic. Looking around they saw four kids around the same age as Himi and Ire'zuk, tucked into an alleyway just past the train station. A boy with purple hair was backed into the alley, his eyes widened in panic, clawing at what appeared to be a sewn shut mouth. The other three, surrounded the panicked boy in an obvious power move. 

Without saying a word the two on the rooftops leapt down behind the group of bullies. 

Himi kept her switchblade hidden, her eyes burning in motherly rage. She stepped forward to catch everyone's attention. 

Ire'zuk sighed as he stepped forward as well. "We're going to be late again."

Himi grinned wickedly, "we'll just say the villain attack slowed us down." 

The bullies didn't react to the new presence. They stood slack and swayed gently as if hit by one of Ire'zuk's stunning strikes. The boy was finally able to tear out the threads covering his mouth and let out a pained gasp.

"Forget you ever saw me this morning and go to school." He hissed out

With those words the three boys turned around and with glazed eyes shuffled out of the alley. 

Himi whistled, her eyes sparkling in amazement and a concerned frown formed on her face. 

"That's a pretty cool quirk! No wonder they tried to silence you before you could say anything!" She turned her gaze to her brother with a smirk, when she looked back her eyes softened. "Are you ok? My brother here has a healing quirk he could help patch up those holes in your lips." 

The boy looked between the two new faces, suspicion swimming in his eyes. "I don't even know your names, why should I accept your help." 

Himi smacked her forehead slightly with a giggle. "I'm sorry! I sometimes forget people don't know us. My name is Himiko Mydoria and this ball of sunshine is my younger brother Izuku." 

Ire'zuk's stared intensely at the boy's lips, brow furrowed and sweat was beginning to glisten on his own upper lip. He could feel it: Each thread of pain followed the next, wave after wave of hurt.  _ I’m not a villain, I’m not a villain, I’m not a villain. _

"Sorry he's not much of a talker when he senses pain. He can feel your distress and it affects him. If you don't want to be healed we can leave." Himi looked at her brother nervously as he continued to stare at the wounds on the boy's face. 

"Zu they are just children. Even though what they did was wrong it isn't your decision if they get punished." 

Ire'zuk blinked several times before tearing his gaze away. He blushed with soft 'sorry' coming out of his mouth. 

He turned back and smiled brightly, "my name is Izuku Mydoria! Despite the weird situation we've found ourselves in it is nice to meet you... umm..." he scratched the back of his neck. 

"Shinso, Hitoshi Shinso..." the boy, Hitoshi, mumbles back. A blush formed on his face as a strange look entered his eyes. "Do what you want with your quirk." 

Ire'zuk smiles even wider. "Well I'll happily heal you then." He walks over and places a couple of fingers by the torn edges of Hitoshi's mouth. Almost instantly the wounds are closed up, not a single scar on the boy's face. 

However, when Hitoshi watched Ire’zuk heal him he saw the scars of his wounds appear on the boy's face. Blending in with the plethora of other marks there. The boy's eyes widened even further when Ire’zuk grabbed his hand and placed a piece of paper in it. 

"That's our cell number." Ire’zuk signed between himself and his sister. "Text us when you get to school ok? You obviously can handle yourself but..." he bites his lips, now possibly forever marred, "I worry about those I've healed and I'd like us to be friends." 

Hitoshi straightened his shoulders and let out a grumbled "I'll think about it" before shuffling out of the alleyway. 

The siblings look at each other before grinning and clamoring up the side of the building. Their heads held a little higher at the thought of helping someone, even if it was only a little bit. 

* * *

Ire'zuk let out a pained sigh as he sunk lower into his chair watching as his teacher flung the stack of aptitude tests behind him in an exaggerated fashion. This action, added to the man's earlier statement about class only wanting to join the hero course caused an over the top show of their abilities and shouts of excitement. 

"That’s exactly why you guys are just extras!" 

The boy Bakugo, a kid with hair as explosive as his quirk jeered. He leapt onto his desk with an air of bravado. The action caused Ire'zuk to huff out a laugh even as he heard the angry shouts of his peers. 

Bakugo continued oblivious to his peers:

"I aced the mock test! I’m the only one at this school who could possibly get into U.A. I’ll definitely surpass All Might and become the top hero! My name will be inscribed on the list of top earners!"

The teacher coughed while looking at a couple more papers. 

"That's right the Midoriya siblings also wanted to get into U. A. ..." he looked at them sitting next to each other, "Bakugo get off the desk you're in homeroom, not gym class." 

Ire'zuk cringed, he didn't want to be called out and he could feel everyone’s eyes on him and his sister. Then the laughter started, Ire'zuk put his head down in an attempt to hide. The shame he felt that morning bubbling back up to the surface. In many ways it was also surreal, no matter the world, children could be cruel creatures. 

"Weak little Deku and the Villain?" A kid called out, then more laughter ensued. "You're kidding right? You can't even heal a person without it hurting yourself. How do you expect to save anyone, and you." The group looked over to Himi who was desperately trying to ignore them. "You are worthless! Who would want a bloodsucking copy-cat for a sidekick, let alone a hero." 

Bakugo hopped off his desk and started stalking towards the two. 

"Do you really think..."

"ENOUGH!" roared the teacher, "you're all adults now, keep in mind that if this behavior keeps up you'll be disqualified from joining the hero course." 

Several students protested, causing another scene, once again the teacher silenced them before starting class. 

Ire'zuk was grateful for the distraction from the new wave of bullying he'd most likely get later that day. He looked over to his sister and placed a hand on her arm and squeezed. He knew the comments about being a villain affected her even if she didn't outwardly show it, being a reformed assassin in her previous life. 

_ Well _ , he mused,  _ as reformed as one could be working as a mercenary _ . 

Himi smiled at him before looking away and noting something down the teacher said. 

* * *

As Ire'zuk predicted he was later cornered on his way home. The sound of crackling filled the air. It was the only warning before a palm slapped against the wall with a small explosion by his head. Bakugo's voice growled in his ear as he was then trapped between the boy's arms. 

"We're not done talking yet  _ Deku _ ." 

Ire'zuk looks wildly around trying to find a way to escape Bakugo's wrath. Being stuck in a body not hardened by combat put him on edge whenever his tormentor decided to show his face. What annoyed him the most was despite what the teacher said Ire'zuk wasn't treated like an adult when it came to reporting the bullies antics. So instead he usually resorted to running away and hiding.

_ Such a  _ **_hero,_ ** _ I never had to deal with this when in the monastery. We were taught respect from an early age...  _

"What do you want Katsuki? Come to fulfill your fated destiny of being a villain?" 

Ire'zuk gulped, he shouldn't have said that, but he couldn't help it. This kid was ignorant of his actions and couldn't see what he was doing was in fact, harming those around him. This kid reminded him of himself, before the dreams, before his purpose, before the monastery. He felt the urge to pinch his nose, he had to be more careful about what he said. He wasn’t his little sister, full of charisma, or his older one full of empathy.

He felt a hand being placed on his shoulder and the sight of Bakugo's face morphing into one of petulant rage. The hand on his shoulder started to sizzle and he could smell smoldering cloth. 

"You better not apply to U. A. Deku." 

Ire'zuk balked,  _ did he just ignore me? How self centered in this guy? Was I just as bad? _

"Most heroes show potential early on. People look at them and just know they are destined for greatness. When I'm the only student from this garbage junior high to get into UA, people will start talking about me like that... they'll realize I'm legit, the next big thing. I refuse to let some two-bit extras get in my way. Understand?" 

Ire'zuk ground his teeth in frustration when he felt Bakugo tighten his grip. The heat of the boy's quirk finally reaching his skin. He opened his mouth to respond when his phone buzzed. 

"Sorry, Bakugo... but I have to take that." He twisted out of the boy’s grip before sprinting around the corner phone in one hand backpack in another. 

"Hello, whoever this is thank you!"

There was a long pause before a sigh could be heard on the other end.  _ I am already regretting this, _ was what it sounded like to Ire'zuk. 

"You're welcome?" The stranger on the other end said. "This is Shinso, sorry I didn't text you like you asked... I was busy." 

"Oh! Hey Hitoshi, it's ok I understand life sometimes gets in the way. Glad you called though, I like phone calls better than texts anyway... hey since you called are you free to hang out?" 

Shinso hesitated for several uncomfortable moments before answering. "Ummm, sure where would you like to meet? I might not be able to go if it's too far though..." 

"There's a beach not far from the train station. I'll text you the location. Sis will meet us there too." 

"... Okay..."

* * *

The beach where Ire'zuk was planning on meeting his sister and new friend at was a forty minute walk from the station. It was at times like these he felt lucky to know several shortcuts due to his parkour lessons. He was passing through a short tunnel that would cut off five minutes from his walk when he heard a rattle of metal behind him. 

"Don't struggle, it'll be over quickly... you'll make a fine medium meat-suit to hide in." 

At those words Ire'zuk's world was tinted in shades of putrid green as his head was submerged in what felt like slime. Panic set in as he clawed at the mass, trying his best to find any kind of purchase on this liquid being. His struggles became more desperate as memories of falling into a gelatinous cube near the beginning of his adventures filled his last moments. With pain and panic echoing in the back of his mind. 

The few seconds that passed him felt like hours as he struggled against the warring memories and his need to breath. He was beginning to lose consciousness when he felt himself being yanked by the collar of his school uniform, what little breath he had left leaving his body in a sudden whoosh. He barely had enough coherent thought to mumble out a weak “thank you” to his would be rescuer as his mind slipped into unconsciousness. 

His last thought as he stared up at a strange pair of golden bunny ears was,  _ oh no, Himi is going to chew me out about this, I just know it. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's December my little dice goblins!
> 
> Welcome back to Initiative Rolled! So I hope you enjoyed this newest edition to the story.
> 
> As you all know I have set up a once a month chapter upload schedule and chapter 5 (technically chapter 4) will be ready to publish 1/1/21 no later than 7:00pm eastern (was that a typo? Who knows...). All future chapters will also be published on the first of every month around 7 pm eastern.
> 
> Some post chapter notes!
> 
> Sooooo my changeling wizard died in the campaign I am playing in. It was completely planed and the group was prepared. Luckily they were able to bring them back without to much of a fuss. It was certainly an experience for them. 
> 
> Any whose, I hope you have a wonderful day/night wherever you are!
> 
> Your lovely,  
> DnD Otaku


	4. Chapter 3: A Fated Meeting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Down, down he fell  
>  Into the dark blades  
> Searching, wandering  
> Looking for love long lost_

“He...hey... wake up!” 

Ire’zuk’s eyes slowly blinked as a deep voice called out to him. His body felt fuzzy and heavy, it reminded him of the time he ran across a lake to prove some point to Zome. 

“ _ Zome, _ ” he called out, “ _ what happened? _ ” He once again tried to open his eyes. When he could finally see his vision was assaulted by the brightest yellow hair he has ever seen and a hand waving in his face. 

The man was giant, even when he crouched over Ire’zuk, his body bent at a neat ninety degree angle to get eye level. The man’s size and muscle mass reminded Ire’zuk of when he met a goliath for the first time. It was almost like standing next to a bear on its hind legs, a bear with a six pack. It was very intimidating despite the man’s smile, almost blinding in its attempt to dazzle Ire’zuk. 

The man, who Ire’zuk determined was definitely  **not** Zome, didn’t appear to have noticed Ire’zuk’s slip of the tongue. His already bright smile grew wider as he held up his hand in a greeting manner and chuckled slightly. 

“Thought, we lost you there!” 

Despite his dulled instincts Ire’zuk slid away from the man in a panic, his mind not registering that he is now safe and out of harms reach. 

The man stood up placing his hands on his hips. “Well, it looks like you are moving around alright. Sorry for that... I didn't mean to get you caught up in my justice work.” He placed his hand on his forehead like he was disappointed in his own actions. “Usually I pay more attention to keeping bystanders safe, but it turns out this city's sewer system is pretty difficult to navigate.” The man then laughed, his barks echoing in the empty underpass. “Anyway, you were a big help! Thanks to you I have captured the evil doer!” He held up two plastic bottles showing off a pair of eyes inside the plastic cylinder. 

As this man's words droned on in the back of Ire’zuk’s mind his thoughts were spinning out of control. For a moment he could have sworn he was with his friends once again, he was helping them fight off a monster that tried to swallow him whole. Then his mind snapped back and he remembered everything once again: the Archmage, his friends being torn from him, however many years it has been in this strange place, the villain attacking him, and his sister, the girl he was going to be meeting at the beach. The same girl who was going to most likely murder him because he was now late. He felt something fall onto his lap as he was zoned out and he looked down at his notebook that now laid there. Opened to a page that had a signature and a drawing of All Might on it. 

Recognition dawned on Ire’zuk and another wave of desperate panic settled into his gut as he watched the man preparing to leave. He couldn’t let this man leave, he needed this man’s help. All Might was the only way he could see  **him** again! In his panic he reached out and shouted at the top of his lungs in a desperate attempt to gain the hero’s attention. He took several steps forward in an effort to reach him. To hold him here, despite the man being ten times bigger than Ire’zuk himself. 

“Wait! All Might I need to ask you something.” 

All Might crouched down, facing away from Ire’zuk as he stretched out his legs. Preparing himself for something. 

“I am sorry my boy but crime waits for no one. Now please stand back, I am about to take off!”

With those words Ire’zuk watched as All Might leapt into the air. His mind went blank and his body moved on its own as he instinctively clung to All Might’s hip. He felt panic mixing with exhilaration as they were flung into the air. 

He was  **flying** ! Something Ire’zuk thought he would never do again. Tears formed in his eyes as he looked down over the buildings passing beneath him. A hand was then placed on his head and a slightly frustrated All Might was staring down at him. 

“H-hey! I love my fans but this is too much! Let go of me!”

Ire’zuk jolted slightly at the man's words. “I can’t! If I do I’d die!” He kept his lips tight to prevent them flying around everywhere. His expression was of pure panic, yet he kept his eyes determined. “I have so many questions I need to ask you personally! Please I just need a few moments of your ti-” He stopped as a zing of pain shot through his stomach and his eyes involuntarily widened.

“Ok, I get it just hold on tight alright!” All Might shouted over the rushing air. 

When All Might turned his head Ire’zuk could see the man make a coughing motion and swore he felt more pain, this time blooming in his chest. He frowned, he remembered reading about All Might this morning fighting some villains, none of the media sites mentioned that the hero was injured in any way. It was possible that the media didn’t see him get injured. He clung tighter to All Might’s hip pressing his fingers a little harder into the man’s body. He used his angelic abilities to search the pro hero for any recent injury. Several threads of pain registered in Ire’zuks mind and alarm bells began to ring. All Might who was flying them through the skies shouldn’t even be able to move right now; the damage inside his body was terrifying. Ire’zuk felt sick and desperately wanted to land. His eyes glazed over as realization of what happened to the hero finally dawned on him. The man, this mortal being whom everyone looked up to as a god, was missing nearly his entire stomach and half a lung. Ire’zuk never registered that the both of them had landed and All Might slowly backing away.

It took a few moments but Ire’zuk could feel the man’s eyes on him as they landed. He was still shaking from what he discovered, lost in a spinning wheel of confusion and pain. The physical pain All Might carried around was nearly overwhelming, yet Ire’zuk remembered when his power sunk into the man he never felt any strong emotional distress connected to the scars. It was almost like whoever gave those life changing marks was a part of his past, one he has moved on from. 

All Might seemed to realize that the boy wasn’t going to talk, so he turned around and let out a sigh. “Good grief. I am sure if you talk to some of the people downstairs, they will let you out.” He started to walk away from Ire’zuk. “Unfortunately I am out of time and I really must go.”

Ire’zuk snapped out of his downward spiral. No he couldn’t leave not yet, he needed to know where Mirai and the others were. This man was the only key!

“WAIT!” Ire’zuk rushed forward and grabbed the man’s shirt in a desperate attempt to hold him in place once again. “Please, you are the only one who can help me. I tried other ways but I am always turned away and I need help. Please...”

All Might paused when he felt the boy grab his shirt, a curious and panicked look entered his eyes. “I am sorry but I cannot wait.”

“Please, All Might! You are the only hero I know who can get in contact with Mirai... I mean Sir Nighteye! Please I need to see him, talk to him, he knows me but when I tried to go to his office to have an official meeting I was turned away because I look like a child.” 

The pro hero’s movements came to a complete stop at this bold request and he turned to fully look at Ire’zuk. His eyes narrowed as they became colder for a second. 

“Young man, how do you know Sir Nighteyes first name?”

Ire’zuk felt relief wash over him for a moment, All Might was listening to him. Even if it is out of suspicion he was still listening. “If he ever mentioned me to you he probably used my old name, Ire’zuk.” 

All Might’s eyes widened slightly at the mention of that name. “Yes Nighteye has spoken that name to me in passing before. He said that it was the name of an old friend that he hadn’t seen in over thirty-one years. You barely look over the age of twelve my boy. Please don’t waste my time with fantasies, I have important work that I must be doing.”

As he was saying this steam was beginning to pour out of him like a chimney. Ire’zuk whose energy was still residing inside All Might, pulsed as a wave of pain came from the heroes entire body. Ire’zuk felt his entire being go on edge, when that wave of energy passed through him he felt something akin to the necrotic magics liches use, this energy in particular was eerily similar to the magic of the last being he ever fought, Sy-gar. When the smoke finally cleared Ire’zuk saw a skeleton of a man standing in All Might’s place. Ire’zuk panicked and held onto the man tighter.

“Sir? What was that just now?”

All Might sighed and pushed the boy off of him. Leaning against the railing of the building he slowly lowered himself down to the ground. His eyes, which appeared to have sunken into his face, watched the young man with trepidation. 

The moment All Might sat down Ire’zuk stepped forward and knelt next to him. He could feel his training kicking in, there was no time for fear or panic. Before him was a person in pain and he should help him, or get him to a hospital as soon as possible. As he thought this he scanned the man’s body trying to see what he felt using his power.

“Sir, are you alright? I felt a spike of pain just then, were you injured recently? Is that why your quirk deactivated? Or is this form the result of someone using their quirk against you?” 

The man looked at Ire’zuk slightly surprised and his breath quickened. “This is a strange reaction... Last time I accidentally revealed my form to someone they panicked thinking I was some sort of imposter.”

“Kinda hard to fake the pain I am sensing right now, sir. I don’t really care if you are All Might or not in this situation. I might be able to help you.”

All Might shook his head. “I highly doubt it kid I have gone to the best healers in Japan and America. No one seems to be able to heal this injury.” He reached down to the hem of his shirt and pulled up to reveal a large dent in his side. “You have seen me in this state so far kid, if I find out you wrote about this online you will be in major trouble.”

Ire’zuk gave a half nod as he gaped at the injury. There was a  **_dent_ ** and the scar tissue was also bruised with the stitch marks sewn in a spider like pattern around the injury. Ire’zuk could feel his energy twitching at the sight and he wanted to desperately reach out and help him. He knew he could use his power to replace the missing organs and damaged tissue with parts of his own body. However, this wasn’t an option, he knew that if he did that there might not be a way for him to grow back the organs he donated.

All Might bent his head down in what appeared to be shame. “This is an old scar that cannot be healed, my quirk was weakened because of it. I got this five years ago and I am only able to work three hours a day now.”

Ire’zuk’s furrowed his brows trying to remember what happened five years ago. “Did that man who went by Toxic Chainsaw do that? The media didn’t report anything about that.”

All Might shook his head. “You are well informed, or more of a fan than you let on... No that punk couldn’t lay a finger on me. I asked that the fight which gave me this injury not be made public. The world couldn’t see their heroes in fear, they needed to see them smiling in the face of dauntless danger.”

Ire’zuk watched calmly as the man looked down at his hands as if he was contemplating something. A strange silence befell them for a few moments: During this time a mixture of shock and profound sadness fell on the young man. This hero sacrificed himself to the point of breaking and wasn't allowed to show this weakness to anyone. 

Would he become this man someday? Did he want this? Did he want to be a hero after this revelation? 

Ire’zuk felt his throat close up slightly and his stomach do small backflips. In his old life he would have gladly given everything he had. He was as Sy-Gar so eloquently put it, ‘the spawn of Ilmater’, a deity who was a protector of the weak and downtrodden. Ire’zuk was born to be someone who would be a hero, an avatar of mercy. Now, everything was different, the people were different, he was different. Yet, one thing remained the same. 

Ire’zuk reached out and hovered his hand above All Might’s injury. “Do you regret stopping him? If it caused you so much harm?”

All Might watched the boy’s hand like a hawk before shaking his head. “I stopped a man who had murdered, tortured and enslaved. I do not regret a thing.”

Ire’zuk nodded, he carefully placed his fingertips onto the man’s injury and pushed his power forth. “I am sorry for causing you so much trouble, All Might, Mirai is a great friend of mine and I miss him dearly. As an apology the least I could do is this...” At those words Ire’zuk directed his healing energy towards the spots in All Might’s body that was trying desperately to heal. He could see that the hero kept reopening and aggravating his old injuries in his attempts to do all he could for those around him. With a sigh he pulled at the threads, reenforcing them, making them stronger than before and in doing so transferred all the old scars over to his own body. He was careful not to replace the organs in his healing; he wasn’t his younger sister who could heal any injury almost as if she reversed time. 

Ire’zuk could feel All Might’s gasp of relief though his fingertips and then the hero shuddered slightly. 

“How did you do that? It feels like I can finally breathe again.”

“No, you are still missing those two organs. I did however heal your scars as if you had at least two years of bedrest with no heroing. I don’t think I will be able to do anything like that again any time soon but maybe you’ll be able to squeeze out another hour? That is if the healing sticks.” 

All Might looked down at this young man while rubbing the back of his neck. He let go of his shirt before sighing and standing up. 

“Look kid, I don’t think I can help you with your mission to speak with Sir Nighteye. We are not really on speaking terms right now but I’ll see what I can do.”

Ire’zuk felt his heart soar at those words, then as quickly as his trembling fingers would allow, he pulled out a card from one of his pockets and handed it to the hero. 

“Thank you so much sir! This has my number on it. My guardian stressed the importance of these when I was younger and now I can see why..”

The hero awkwardly laughed at the child’s antics as he started to put the card away. Ire’zuk saw him panic slightly as he tapped his pockets and let out an “ _ oh crap _ ”. 

“All Might...?” Ire’zuk begins to ask when suddenly an explosion sounds off about three blocks away. 

_ “Ah crap...” _ Ire’zuk breathed in celestial. 

The hero and the ex-adventure said no more as they both dashed towards the sound of explosions. Panic was in both of their eyes. All Might despite being given the healing boost from Ire’zuk ran through the rooftop door; while Ire’zuk leapt from building to building using his years of training to guide him towards the danger. Ire’zuk was the first to arrive, his lungs burned from his new injuries and he could feel his body protesting every step. 

He landed on a roof just above a sign welcoming people into a shopping district. The heat from the bright flames caused him to cover his face for a moment before looking at the scene below. He watched in horror as the slime person,  _ monster _ , who attacked him earlier in the day had their form surrounding another person. His eyes rounded in realization when he saw it was Bakugo, the boy who torments him at school every day. The slime covered three-quarters of the boy’s face, nearly suffocating him in an attempt to perhaps take over the bully’s body. 

_ Is it wrong that part of me feels vindicated? He has been my tormentor for years, harassing both me and my sister. Yet... _

From his vantage point he could hear the other heroes saying they wanted to wait for proper back up and he felt anger bubbling under his skin. How could they say that? Do none of these heroes have a strategist in their team? Were they not trained so they could work around obstacles like this? There were several heroes there, and Ire’zuk could already tell where on this monster the best point of attack would be: the creature's eyes, nearly every seeing person's weakness. Ire’zuk could see the fear in the boy's face and despite everything, he knew if he didn’t do something to help Bakugo, the child would end up getting hurt or worse. 

Looking around Ire’zuk saw the entire district was covered in flames and when Bakugo moved more exploding flames poured out of him. Realization hit Ire’zuk that the monster was using his bully’s own quirk against him and was adding to all of the destruction and mayhem. 

With careful movements Ire’zuk leapt from the roof into the alleyway next to the slime monster. He didn’t have any more time to think; the ex-adventure ran forward from the alleyway throwing his book bag at the creature in an attempt to distract it. He could hear panicked shouts from the heroes at his sudden appearance but he didn’t care as the boy in front of him needed him more than those so called heroes. 

Ire’zuk was lucky that his bag landed in the monster's face causing it to crash into the creatures eye, blinding it if only temporarily. His ki danced under his skin as he leapt up and struck at the creatures in an attempt to stun it. The monster froze, surprising Ire’zuk, he gambled on the idea that perhaps his stunning strikes would work against this new form of ooze. Bakugo was able to break his mouth and shoulders free from the creature's grasp and he sent a confused glare towards his rescuer. 

“Deku, what are you doing here?”

Ire’zuk seeing an opening grabbed Bakugo under his arm and pulled in an attempt to free him from the creature's grapple. “I refuse to let someone fall when I can save them!”

Ire’zuk pulled harder trying with all his might to free this boy from the creature's grasp but he was not his old self and not as strong as he used to be. He could feel the creature beginning to recover from the stun and he panicked. His ki now dormant in his system once more and he couldn’t rely on it. He refused to give up however and with one more tug was able to pull Bakugo’s arm free from the slime’s grasp. 

“It’s eyes are vulnerable Bakugo!”

The boy’s confused glare turned into one of vengeance as he directed his hand upwards towards the creature’s face. He let off another explosion one with more force and desperation than ever before. 

To say Ire’zuk was impressed would be an understatement.  _ It is almost like watching Miria again with his fireball spell, point-blank and deadly. _ Ire’zuk felt himself smile as the shockwave from the explosion pushed both Bakugo and himself away from the monster and into the waiting arms of one of the heroes. For the second time that day Ire’zuk felt his world turn black as he passed out in the person's arms, his hand still gripping Bakugo’s shirt tightly. 

* * *

When Ire’zuk came to, he saw a couple of heroes angrily bickering between each other on whether they should lecture or praise him for his actions. The more Ire’zuk listened in, the more they leaned towards lecture. He sighed in frustration, couldn’t any of the heroes have done what he did? It was basic stratigy. Nothing special, yet from what he was hearing it was almost like he had opened a whole new way of thinking for these people. 

The hero on the right, the wooden man from that morning Ire’zuk realized, perked up when he saw that the boy was awake and moving. “Ah, you are awake I see! That was both dangerous and commendable. What you did was very risky, what were you thinking?”

Ire’zuk looked over to the child who was sitting on the curbside next to him. His own hero squad commending him on his endurance for surviving that villain attack for so long. The boy looked over to Ire’zuk a confused glare plastered on his face. 

_ Perhaps he just has one of those faces, one stuck in a perpetual anger... _

“I wasn’t, my legs just moved on their own. That’s usually how it works for most heroes, right? There is someone who needs saving so you don’t think you just do?”

The man on the left, a guy with arms the size of small tree trunks, shook his head. “That may have been what it was like in the past child but not now. What you did could be viewed as vigilantism.”

Ire’zuk frowned, “wha-?”

“You glowed that entire fight and your scars appeared to be bleeding. Gave Woods here a good scare thinking you were actually injured.”

“But I don’t glow! That isn’t my quirk!”

The wooden hero tilted his head in curiosity. His hand idly scratched at some charred skin. “Then what is your quirk.”

Absently Ire’zuk motioned for Woods to hand him his hand, confused the hero complied and watched in fascination as the charring on his arm disappeared and then appeared on the boy's arm nearly healed. 

“That is my quirk, I can heal a person by taking the injuries onto myself. I am lucky enough that I have a pretty fast healing ability so in the end I just end up with some scars.” 

Woods took several deep breaths before coughing. “I see, well you will not be charged for vigilantism this time. Mainly because if you do have a new aspect of your quirk you were not aware of yet. It shouldn’t be counted against you if it happened in a stressful environment. It also has to do with your age so keep that in mind for the future alright?”

Ire’zuk nodded before standing. “Can I go? I have to be home soon and... OH No...” Ire’zuk’s eyes widened in horror as he pulled out his phone and saw thirty unread texts and five missed phone calls. “My sister is going to kill me...”

Both heroes laugh at that statement and Woods patted Ire’zuk on the back in what he could only assume was meant to be comforting.

“I highly doubt she’ll do that but if you are worried you could have one of us walk you home.” 

Ire’zuk swallowed before shaking his head. “No, I need to face her on my own. I'll be ok.” He looked over towards Bakugo who was still glaring at him. 

“Bakugo want to walk home?”

The boy looked startled at the question but silently nodded as he too got up. Together they slowly pushed their way past the crowd and away from all of the media. Once they were a block away from where Bakugo was attacked Ire’zuk turned towards the boy.

“I am sorry but I have to call my family to let them know that I am alright. I was supposed to meet my sister and new friend somewhere but never showed.” 

When Bakugo didn’t say anything Ire’zuk sighed, taking out his phone once more. It barely rang once before it was picked up by a screaming Himi.

“ _ IRE’ZUK BRIGHT-HAND WHEN I FIND YOU YOU WILL WISH THAT YOU WERE DEAD YOU HEAR ME _ !”

Ire’zuk held the phone away from his ear, cringing slightly at volume his sister was taking. “Sis, calm down please I can explain...”

“CALM DOWN? CALM DOWN! BOTH HITOSHI AND I HAD BEEN WAITING FOR YOU TO SHOW UP AT THE BEACH FOR AN ENTIRE HOUR, THAT WAS FOUR HOURS AGO! I HAD TO EXPLAIN TO HITOSHI THAT, NO YOU WERE NOT DITCHING US BUT JUST A LITTLE LATE! Where are you...”

Ire’zuk gulped slightly and looked over towards Bakugo who was trying to hide a grin forming on his face. Ire’zuk made a face at him before turning back to the phone.

“I was attacked by a villain sis, then Bakugo was attacked by the same villain right after. I may have tried to step in and overexerted myself.”

Ire’zuk could hear a sigh on the other end of the phone and some furious whispering. “No Mom Izuku is ok, he was attacked by some bad guy but it sounds like he defended himself and got away. Don’t worry Hitoshi you can still stay for dinner. My brother will make sure he makes up for the time he made us wait. Right?”

Ire’zuk gulped even louder this time before nodding his head and making a noise of agreement. 

“Good I expect to see you back here in an hour. If I don’t see you I am calling for a search party and I will hunt you down.”

“I love you too sis, I will see you soon.”

With those words Ire’zuk hung up and let out a deep sigh. He never liked getting Himi’s motherly personality angry because it always ended badly for whomever it was directed towards, to have it pointed at him made him quake slightly. 

Bakugo let out an angry noise and raised his face so he could sneer slightly at Ire’zuk. “Don’t let this get to your head damn nerd. This little saving act doesn’t make us friends in any way.”

Ire’zuk ground his teeth and could feel his hackles rise. Bakugo had a look on his face that appeared to be jeering and he was about to open his mouth to say more when Ire’zuk turned fully towards him and held up a hand to silence him. He needed to make sure that what he said next would leave some sort of impact on Bakugo and decided to choose similar words to what Mirai once said to him when they first met. 

“Look, I am only going to say this once. I meant what I said at the school and when I punched that creature in the face. I don’t want you to fall and I see potential in you becoming a great hero. You’re just an ass and I refuse to acknowledge or work with asses ok? So... shape up a little and maybe when we are both in U. A. we can look each other in the eye as equals...”

The look on Bakugo’s face was one that morphed from hostile jeering into seething rage. He looked down his nose at Ire’zuk trying to use his height to intimidate the smaller kid. 

“I told you that I am the only one in our school that is going to make it into U. A. and there is nothing you can do about that.”

“As you said there is nothing you can do if we make it in. So let’s agree that perhaps learning to work together rather than against each other is our best option to getting in. Unlike you I am not really aiming for the top. I just want to help people, that is the duty of a hero anyway.” 

With those final words Ire’zuk turned back to the road and took the street that would lead to his house, which was luckily the opposite direction of Bakugos. After a few more moments of walking Ire’zuk heard his phone go off and a notification appeared on his screen. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays my little dice goblins!
> 
> I know many of you might have figured out that I might drop a chapter before my usually scheduled date for Initiative Rolled! I hope you have been enjoying the story so far.
> 
> As usual I have set up a once a month chapter upload schedule and chapter 5 (technically chapter 4) will be ready to publish 1/1/21 no later than 7:00pm eastern. All future chapters will also be published on the first of every month around 7 pm eastern.
> 
> Some post chapter notes!
> 
> My group decided to skip this weeks d&d session (because of Christmas). The group is preparing to fight an swarms of thought in the afterlife in order to save the soul of a friend. We will be doing that on New Year's eve... so MIDNIGHT D&D SESSION WHOOOHOO! (Not sure if you can tell but I am excited) 
> 
> Off-handed comment, one of my d&d buddies got me a Dragon Age table top core rule book and now I cannot wait to set up a campaign/story for my friends to play in.
> 
> I hope you have a wonderful day/night wherever you are!
> 
> Your lovely,  
>  DnD Otaku


	5. Chapter 4: The Test

Unknown Number: I will talk to Sir Nighteye for you and see if he is willing to meet.

Ire’zuk smiled as he pocketed his phone and entered his house. He could hear laughter in the dining room, his sister, Inko, and who he assumed was Hitoshi were all chuckling at various levels. Another voice echoed through the halls as well, a voice he thought he wouldn’t hear for at least three more months. As quietly as he could he slipped his shoes off and walked into the dining room only to see Hisashi on his sister’s laptop eating and joking with everyone though video chat. 

When Ire’zuk was reborn into this strange world one of the first things he remembers seeing was the cool grey and warm honey-green eyes of his new guardians. Their personalities matched their eyes as well and, in a strange way, brought comfort to Ire’zuk when he was still a helpless newborn. Despite the language barrier all those years ago, Ire’zuk was sure of several things: one, his new caretakers loved each other deeply; two, Inko was easily stressed over the smallest things; and three, Hisashi was a pun master. 

“Then he said, ‘no imPasta! Get it!’” The man on the screen laughed at his joke then looked over his family’s shoulders to see Ire’zuk. “Izuku my boy! You just missed the best part of my story!” Even though his face appeared to be disappointed his grey eyes sparkled in mischief and relief. 

Both Himi and Inko looked up at the outcry to see Ire’zuk standing there awkwardly before they got up and ran to hug their safe family member. 

It was Inko who got to him first and Ire’zuk’s entire being was enveloped in a warm hug that pushed the day's exhaustion away. He sighed as Inko hugged him tighter, her long dark green hair brushing against his cheeks. 

“Oh, Izuku my baby! You are ok! I was so worried for you!” She wailed into his hair.

“Mom, you are suffocating him...” Himi chastised before coming over and patting her younger brother on the head. “Seriously though Zu, are you ok?”

Ire’zuk chuckled softly into Inko's shoulder and patted her back as a sign to let go. “Guys, as I said on the phone I am ok, just a little shaken up. Also very hungry.” 

Inko pulled back and gave him a soft smile. “Well I made your favorite so eat up ok?”

Ire’zuk smiled brightly and obliged, taking a seat at the table next to Hitoshi who awkwardly patted his new friend’s arm. The boy’s sleeves were rolled up and Ire’zuk could see a bandage nestled in the crook of his elbow.

“I see you skipped out on training...” he said quietly.

Ire’zuk laughed before taking a bite of katsudon, he shook his head and gave Himi a playful look. “Please tell me my sister didn’t do what I think she just did…”

Himi rolled her eyes and let out a dramatic sigh. “If you mean adopt him into our ragtag family and give him a chance at entering U.A. in ten months then… yes, yes I did.” 

Ire’zuk shook his head and he could hear Hisashi laughing in the background. “Be careful there young Shinso when my daughter wants something she usually gets it.”

Ire’zuk clicks his tongue in disapproval then points his chopsticks accusingly towards the computer screen. “That’s because you spoil her. She has you wrapped around her little finger.”

The man on the other end raises his hands in defeat, a smile still present on his face. “You are right there my boy I just can’t help it. She will always be daddy’s little girl in my eyes.”

Ire’zuk sighed before letting out a half laugh at the look of mild fear on Hitoshi’s face at this new revelation. He placed a hand on the boy’s shoulder in mock concern before turning towards the screen.

“We know... anyway... It’s nice to see you Hisashi, how's America?” 

* * *

Ire’zuk hummed a quiet tune as he, Himi, and Hitoshi walked through the gates of U. A. to begin their entrance exam. It took ten months of grueling training to prepare themselves for whatever was in store for them. Ire’zuk could feel Himi vibrating next to him in excitement. She received her letter from the support department the other day. Even if he didn’t read it Ire’zuk knew exactly what it said and he couldn’t be happier for his older sister. He could tell that she was excited to show off her abilities and versatility when it came to her quirk. Her excitement was so great in fact, she ended up running off the moment her feet made it past the gate. Waving a temporary goodbye to the boys as she headed inside. 

Hitoshi smiled as he looked at the golden letters that adorned the glass walls of the school. Unlike Himi, Ire’zuk could almost feel a thrum of anxiety coming from his friend and gently placed a hand on his shoulder. 

Ire’zuk lowered his voice as they walked towards the entrance of the school, his tone slightly affectionate. “We have been practicing. We are prepared, Tosh. I know we can do this.”

Hitoshi nodded at Ire’zuk’s statement as he walked forward then in his state of nervousness tripped on the edge of the first stair. When Ire’zuk went out to catch him he was surprised to see that his friend was floating in the air. 

“Hey are you ok?” A feminine voice spoke from behind the two boys. 

Turning around Ire’zuk could see a girl with roundish cheeks and two splotches of pink under each eye, like a permanent blush. She smiled and placed her hands together with pointer fingers apart.

“I’m sorry for using my quirk on you but I figured it was bad luck to trip on the day of the entrance exams...” Her already blushing cheeks darkened slightly before she tapped the last of her fingers together causing her fingertips to glow and gravity to return to Hitoshi. 

Hitoshi let out a sigh besides Ire’zuk as his feet returned to solid ground and he bowed slightly towards the girl. “Thank you for helping me but I am afraid my friend and I have to prepare for the exam. Good luck on the test.”

Hitoshi quickly turned and strolled causally towards the entrance, this action causing Irezuk to laugh quietly beside the new girl. The new girl looked between Ire’zuk and Hitoshi in confusion worry etched into her brow. In an attempt to ease her worry Ire’zuk motioned her to follow as he begun to walk up the stairs once more. Once they were both inside the building Ire’zuk turned towards his new acquaintance and smiled.

“You’ll have to forgive Shinso, he’s nervous. It was nice to meet you and thanks for saving my friend.”

The girl smiled and waved him off as the two of them went separate ways. It only took moments for Ire’zuk to catch up with his sister and friend in the room which was holding the written part of the exam and sit down to do the most boring part of a hero's work. Paperwork; two hours of annoying and frustrating paperwork. Ire’zuk felt grateful that despite the toll his body took on being brought to this new world he still had his keen mind to help him with these kinds of exams. 

After finishing his work he began to meditate. If he hadn’t he would have tried to get up and walk around as he waited for the teacher to call time. Ire’zuk never really liked tests, even in the old world he couldn’t stand doing any kind of paperwork. That was Mirai’s department and he was no longer here to help him. 

Ire’zuk let out a deep breath as his nerves spiked again, he barely noticed when his test was taken away and in its place was a card with his picture on it. He turned his gaze towards the front and tried to listen in to the teacher, the hero Present Mic he realized once he focused once more. He smiled and leaned forward as the hero explained the rules for the next part of their test. 

_ Trial by combat, not the most ideal scenario I could find myself in. After all I have the skills suited for a support type hero than a combative one _ . Ire’zuk hummed softly as he begun to strategize under his breath in celestial. Somewhere in the back of his thoughts he noted the lack of input from Zome or Mirai but brushed it off. 

“...and you with the curly green hair.”

Ire’zuk looked up startled and stared down towards a young man with straight blueish black hair and piercing blue eyes. He pointed towards himself in confusion, a slight blush rising to his cheeks.

“Yes, your singing is a distraction and if you are not going to take this test seriously then perhaps you should leave.”

Ire’zuk balked slightly before settling down and trying to stay quiet by chewing on the end of the pencil he was using to take his test. He once again waited until it was time to move on and his group got onto a bus which would take them to the testing ground. He was slightly saddened to see his friend and sister step onto a different bus but smiled when he noticed the nice girl with the interesting gravity quirk step on before him. Looking through his group once more he also noticed a young man with multiple arms that seemed to change in functionality, between ears, eyes and mouths.

An idea struck Ire’zuk in that moment and he approached the multi-armed boy with an idea to help all three get into their dream school. 

Nothing in the test’s rules said he couldn’t work with allies.

* * *

Meanwhile within the control room of the battle arenas the teachers of U. A. sat watching prospective students preparing to fight their way towards their goal of becoming heroes. The newest addition, All Might, leaned back in his chair, his form thinner and weaker than what his fellow heroes were used to seeing.

“I am curious to see what kind of heroes we will receive this year.” the thin man murmured into his long fingers. 

A scruffy haired man snorted at the question. “We are getting children who have the prospect of having potential. Potential we will need to mold into skill. Keep that in mind when teaching.” 

All Might frowned at the man but said nothing as he heard Present Mic call out for section B to start their final test. 

Most of the children to his amusement stayed put for a moment staring up at the voice hero in confusion before rushing off into the arena. 

“Oh look at that, how curious. On screen three can we have a playback of the start please?” The white furred principle, Nezu, said in interest. One of the technicians nodded and brought up the first ten seconds of the exam , the camera focused on the entrance, its mic clearly picking up the call for the start of the battle.

All Might perked up as he saw three students who started running right as the call for the battle to begin. They pushed past the ones around them who were standing in shock at what Present Mic said and were already several yards ahead of the pack. 

“I recognize the green haired boy, I have in fact met him before. He definitely left an impact on me.”

The other heroes looked over in surprise at this statement before focusing on the boy and his newly formed friend group. 

One of the techs pulled up the child's info and displayed it on screen for the teachers to read: 

**Midoriya, Izuku**

**Quirk: Wound Transference**

**** **Touch emitter quirk**

**** **Has the ability to take any injury or sickness from a person and place it onto himself. Injuries taken from others appear to heal quicker than self inflicted injuries. Also claims to feel both the physical and emotional distress of a person before contact has been made.**

**** **Healing rank: C**

“So we have a little masochist on our hands then.” The art teacher, Midnight the X-rated hero cooed as she eyed the screen with interest. 

“Also appears to be a strategist.” Came the drawl of the Gun Hero Snipe, he leaned forward pointing towards screen two. “Look there, he wasn’t just running ahead of those children to get an advantage. He appears to be working with those two other students. Using his ability to allow his new allies to keep fighting. I award him five rescue points for ensuring the safety of his allies as well as two more points for a unique strategy.”

All Might sat up straighter with a look of shock on his face. “Wait is that allowed? Isn’t this a test of individual skill.”

Nezu calmly smiled while taking a sip of tea provided to him. “There is nothing in the rules stating a person cannot recruit the help of others. I’d say as long as they are working together and not using each other as stepping stones. Then, I shall allow it.”

* * *

Ire’zuk took several deep breaths as he ran along the rooftops, watching his new friend Ochaco use her quirk. It was almost hypnotizing to watch her lift the “villains” around her and then let gravity slam them back onto the ground. Following right behind Ire’zuk was he other new friend Mezo, the young man with multiple arm-like appendages. He easily kept up with Ire’zuk and even surprised the ex-adventurer on the bus with his openness to the idea of teaming up with each other. 

He couldn’t help but smile widely as the two of them ran across the rooftops following their friend on the streets. In the briefest of moments it was almost like the old days. He felt warm and cold, awake and exhausted, his body pumping him full of adrenaline as he ran endlessly in his attempts to keep his two friends safe during their trial. He was lost in thought for only a few moments before he heard a shout beside him.

“Midoriya, I can hear about three to five of them in the alley way below. I believe they are planning on ambushing our friend on the ground.” 

Ire’zuk smiled tightly, despite it being over fourteen years he is still not used to people calling him by a different name. “Thank you Mezo. Let’s take care of them before they hurt Ochaco.”

The young man nodded his eyes slightly wide as he watched Ire’zuk leap off the building edge and into the alleyway. He couldn’t tell that Ire’zuk used his ki to help lighten his body, as if a wizard had cast the spell Feather Fall on him. As he leapt off the edge he could see four robots all with large painted 2’s on their “arms”. Using the time he had in the air to direct his movements Ire’zuk landed on top of one of the robots before gripping its head and violently twisting it as if breaking its neck. To his right he could hear Mezo land on two of the other robots destroying them almost instantly. Mezo let out a warning shout as the fourth and final robot reared back it’s metallic fist in an attempt to hit Ire’zuk in the back. With speed Ire’zuk forgot he possessed, now that his ki was awake, bubbling under his skin, he easily dogged the robots attacks and stuck it in the elbow joint, causing the joint to break and the arm to fall off. 

With its arm missing Ire’zuk then swung the broken piece right back at the machine, denting it and causing it to misfire. As its eye lens dimmed and it stopped moving the two boys ran out of the ally way to see Ochaco drop three more robots to the asphalt. She looked out of breath and her mouth wavered as she looked over towards her companions. Through the din of shouts and screams of metal being torn Mezo had to translate what Ochaco was saying in order for Ire’zuk to understand what she was saying to them.

“H-hey, I got twenty-eight so far. What about you guys?”

The two boys stepped closer then Mezo closed his eyes a moment and Ire’zuk heard him counting out loud. “About thirteen so far. Midoriya you have about the same right?”

Ire’zuk nodded and he looked over to his female friend with concern. He stepped forward and touched her arm already feeling her stomach twisting and turning from over use of her quirk. His team mates watch in fascination as his hair started to glow and a bird like mask appeared to illuminate his face for a few moments. 

“There! Your stomach ache should be gone now. I think we have about five more minutes left?”

Ochaco looked worried and she turned to Mezo. “We need to get you guys more points, do you hear anything?”

Mezo tilted his head and several ears popped out of his appendages after about six seconds his eyes widened in what the other two could only ascribe as fear and he looked down the street.

“Something big is coming, bigger than what we’ve been dealing with! I don’t know what it is.”

Ire’zuk who tried his best not to feel nervous at the news, despite the joking nature of what the zero point robot might possibly be on the bus, Ire’zuk couldn’t help but feel that this was most likely the thing they were told to avoid. He thought quickly about what he saw of the bots they have fought so far and a plan of attack formed in his mind.

“We need to recruit another person. Someone faster than us to get us there quickly. Mezo I will need you to find the control panel when we get there it should be by its legs. Ochaco I will help keep your quirk from making you sick, we will need you to make all of us weightless ok?”

The other two nodded and looked around as fast as possible to try to find someone with a speed quirk. It wasn’t long before they noticed the blue haired boy from before, the one who criticised Ire’zuk on what he thought was singing earlier that day. He had engines on his legs and as such had a speed so fast they had a hard time tracking him. 

Irezuk quickly ran over as the boy paused to right himself after slamming legs first into a two-pointer.

“Hey, you’re fast, help us quickly! The zero pointer is on it’s way and it’s bigger than what everyone is expecting. It might hurt someone if we don’t do something!”

The boy pushed his glasses up on his face and scoffed slightly. “I highly doubt the school would endanger its applicants.”

Ire’zuk frowned and waved his hands around them as if to emphasize all the dangerous robots. “Not intentionally perhaps: Look, that thing could end up doing something to hurt someone and the heroes may not be able to stop it. You want to go to U.A. to become a hero, right? Then take the initiative and help us!”

The boy frowned but his eyes widened in fear when the ground around them trembled and a robot the size of a skyscraper came into view. Its enormous hands gripped the sides of buildings as it looked around for the young applicants. As large chunks of building began to fall around them the two boys heard a cry and looked over to see Ochaco with her legs trapped under some rubble and Mezo helping her out. 

“Come on! Help me before it gets worse!” Ire’zuk shouted as he ran towards his friends. Despite being hurt, Ochaco looked determined as she gripped Ire’zuk and Mezo’s hands for a moment, both of their bodies glowing.

The engine boy's eyes were wide for a few more seconds before following Ire’zuk, his gaze set in a determined glare as the monstrous automaton rumbled forward. 

“What do you want me to do?” He questioned, over the yelling of the other children.

Ire’zuk grinned, rushing around to the boys back and gripping his shirt. He motioned for the other two of his original team to do the same and leaned in to yell near the engine boy’s ear.

“Just run around it! Ochaco made us all lighter and Mezo is going to look for it’s weak spot! Now run!”

The engine boy took off with his cargo, his eyes set in fear mixed with determination.

* * *

A space suited hero leaned forward in their seat. “What’s this? Are those four really going to take on the Zero Pointer?” The other teachers could hear the surprise and worry etched into their voice.

The scruffy man sighed as the principle took a sip of tea, both of their eyes gleaming in curiosity. 

“There is always one or two every year that attempts to take down the big one.” Nezu hummed as he put his tea down. “Never seen an applicant convince other students to try to help them in their efforts.”

The space suited hero fidgeted in their seat nervously. “Powerloader you have the kill switch right.” 

A man with a bucket loader like helmet on his head nodded and was watching the screen intently.

* * *

The group of four rushed forward through the dust and debris the monstrosity of a robot was kicking up. Ire’zuk had his powers flowing nearly on a constant loop, trying to keep Ochaco from throwing up, Mezo from being too hurt by the bebris, and the engine kid from tiring out. He felt tired and nearly drained but he refused to show any signs of exhaustion, he needed to keep his new friends safe. 

“Midoriya! There on the left just like you said a large section big enough to hide a security panel!” Mezo shouted over the sound of whirring metal and falling rubble. With one of his many appendages he formed a hand and pointed towards a metal plate about the size of a frisbee above the left track. 

Ire’zuk nodded and grinned. “Mezo, throw me at it! Ochaco keep me weightless and engine boy keep running!” 

Ire’zuk barely heard the laughter of his new friends and the shout from the engine kid,  _ my name is Tenya Iida, _ as Mezo gripped him by his collar and threw the boy right at the panel. 

His ki burned through his skin as he flew forward and landed on the track’s metal cover. With quick movements he placed his hands onto the metal and pressed his ki forth into it, he smirked as the panel disintegrated at his touch revealing the large round button similar to what all the other robots had. 

He reached out and pressed it, hoping beyond hope this was something that would cause the machine to turn off. When the robot suddenly shuddered to a complete halt Ire’zuk let out a deep sigh and laughed. They had done it, they had stopped the monster from hurting anyone!

He ran to the edge of the robot’s track before leaping off using some of his remaining ki to make himself light again to land properly. He smiled towards his team mates who were jumping with joy and excitement over their victory of the giant robot. He dashed over and high fived his original two friends then turned towards Iida. With a huge smile on his face Ire’zuk stuck out his hand to shake.

“Thank you for helping us, hero!”

Iida’s eyes widened, then narrowed as he looked at Ire’zuk more critically. He gripped his hand to shake. “You...”

“Time’s up!” Present Mic shouted from the observation tower as a loud siren started wailing through the streets. 

* * *

The teachers watched in awe as their final test stopped in its tracks as if someone pressed the pause button on the live feed of the exam. On screen four the status of the zero pointer robot was flashing red with “Emergency Shut-down” blinking above it. 

“H-he... found the secondary emergency kill switch.” Powerloader cried out. “How is that possible! How did he know where to look!”

Nezu smirked as he pulled out a couple of files he had next to him. On them were the names and quirks of all the children instrumental in stopping the zero pointer. “I believe the young man was being more shrewd in his choice of companions than we originally thought. He was also able to come up with a competent if not risky strategy to defeat the obstacle in his way.”

“Risky as it may be it still had the least amount of damage caused to the surrounding areas. The zero pointer barely got around the block before it was shut down. If this was a real life situation and not a simulation what that young man did would have saved a lot of lives.” The space suited hero praised.

“It is probably because he was treating it like it was real life and not some sort of test. Did you hear what the cameras picked up with his conversation with the Iida kid? This wasn’t a game to him, he was full heartedly worried about the safety of those around him.” The scruffy hero besides All Might mused. 

“It was quite impressive how he was able to convince others to act.” All Might said with a small smile on his lips.

Nezu nodded and smiled as well. “Indeed, in fact I think it is time for us to award that small group of applicants some rescue points for their bravery and rezolve.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy New Year my little dice goblins!
> 
> As I have said before I hope you have been enjoying the story so far. It has been a blast writing it and I plan on continuing for a while. 
> 
> The next chapter upload (chapter 6 technically chapter 5) will be ready to publish 2/1/21 no later than 7:00pm eastern. All future chapters will also be published on the first of every month around 7 pm eastern.
> 
> Some post chapter notes!
> 
> I've really gotten into daddyphatsnaps MHA raps, specifically Gentle Criminal. There is something about it that I love!
> 
> I hope you have a wonderful day/night wherever you are!
> 
> Your lovely,  
>  DnD Otaku


	6. Chapter 5: Familiar Stranger

Ire’zuk was restless in the house waiting for his letter from U. A. to arrive. During the last two weeks he had trained with his sister and Hitoshi as a way to keep himself distracted. They all wanted to be the best and U. A. is known as one of the best hero academies in the country. Ire’zuk knew if he was accepted into this school he’d be one step closer to his family. Even if he wasn’t, there were plenty of other schools that would accept him. After all, he took pride in the skills he displayed during the exam. He also knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that his sister was accepted into the school based on what she told him. 

_“You should have seen it Zu!”_ _She had cried during dinner after the exam._ _“No one absolutely no one was expecting to see Present Mic fighting in the exam! I was glad Hitoshi was there too because he protected me while I was changing. He was amazing, I wish he was able to show off his quirk more during the test... Oh, and did you see the zero pointer? Did you see how big that thing was Zu! I’m still vibrating.”_

He chuckled at the memory, his eyes distant as he stared down at his food.

“Izuku _... _ I-zuku? Izuku?” 

Ire’zuk blinked and looked up at Inko who was staring at him in concern. He sent a reassuring smile towards her and dug into his food once again with gusto.

“Hey, slow down there kido, don’t want you to choke on your lunch there.” Hisashi gently chided from the computer screen. 

Himi leaned in close to Ire’zuk her hand placed firmly on his shoulder. “Yeah Zu, you need to be here for when Tosh calls. I think he sent a text saying he got his letter today! So there is a high chance that we will get ours too.” She turned her gaze to the man on the screen. “You are going to be here for when we open our letters right Dad?”

Hisashi smiled brightly and small flames danced off his tongue as he laughed. “Of course I will be there, my dear. I wouldn’t miss it for the world, in fact I took today and the next day off for this reason!”

Himi smiled, her excitement sparkled in her eyes. 

“You’re the best Dad! I got the dishes today Mom.” She called as she went to the sink to fill it up. 

Ire’zuk swallowed the last of his meal, his eyes once again distant. “H-hey, thank you so much for supporting us. I know you don’t really want us doing hero work but we were born for it... more than you’ll ever know.”

Inko nodded sadly as she heard Ire’zuk thank her, Hizashi frowned and his eyes became serious.

The man behind the screen sighed. “I am sorry that we weren’t as supportive at first. Knowing you and your sister however, I highly doubt you would have stopped attempting to be heroes because of us. You both have always been determined and stubborn.” The man perked up and looked over towards his wife. “However, it would be foolish to not give our all in supporting you. Plus Ultra, right?”

Inko nodded with a watery smile. “Yes, plus ultra!”

Himi turned off the water and skipped around the dinner table to collect the dishes. Whether she was ignoring her family's distress or was oblivious she wasn’t making it known. “I am going to check the mail! I want to see if our letters have arrived.”

Their letters indeed arrive later that day and as Hizashi promised he stayed on the video call despite it being around two in the morning where he was at the time. 

During their wait they got an upsetting call from Hitoshi saying he didn’t get into the hero course. He mourned his loss at his chosen path but was happy to still be going to U.A. as a general studies student. Both siblings stubbornly informed their friend that they would help fight the system to get him into the hero course, even if that meant appealing to the higher powers like Nezu and the school board. They then took some time discussing new eating regimens and exercise plans with their friend to help prepare him for his future hero work. 

“There you go kiddo!” Hizashi called out from the computer. “You’ll make it! If my children have any say in it I know you will. We will all be rooting for you!” 

The family could tell that by the end of the call Hitoshi was feeling better and with the plans to continue his training he left the call with a lighter heart than before. 

It was also no surprise to the two ex-adventurers that they were able to make it into the hero course as well. 

Ire’zuk felt his heart warm knowing he was one step closer to his family and his old home.

* * *

When April finally came around and the new school year began, the two siblings set out for their first day before the sun even rose in the sky. They grasped their breakfast between their teeth as they set out for the first leg of their journey. On the way they ran into Hitoshi who was taking up the similar habit of waking before the sunrise and bringing breakfast with him. 

Without a word the three new U.A. students started towards their destination jumping from rooftop to rooftop. Every now and then they would stop to take a bite or sip of their breakfast as they watched the world around them begin to wake up. They passed under the gates of the school around eight in the morning, doing their best to avoid being spotted by the large crowd of people outside.

“The sharks are swimming in the water now that All Might has been confirmed as a teacher.” grumbled Hitoshi as he took off his shoes at the school lockers. 

Himi sighed as she closed her own locker in disgust. “Don’t they have more important things to write about than this? I mean he is already in the news for his hero work and plenty of people have already interviewed him. Wouldn’t it make more sense if they focused on something more important?” 

_ “You forget how famous we became when we were dubbed heroes Himi.” _ Ire’zuk said. 

“One of these days you're going to teach me that strange language you and Himiko keep using.”

Ire’zuk smiled trying his best to hide how much he didn’t want to share this piece of himself, before patting his friend on his shoulder. “I’d be happy to teach you. We just need to make the time and considering our training it might be hard but I am sure we could work something out.” 

Hitoshi groaned. “No, you already work me to the bone as it is. I feel like I am only getting four hours of sleep because of you guys.”

Ire’zuk felt relief yet frowned at his friend's statement saying nothing as he finished changing his own shoes. The day before the three of them agreed that they would go to the teachers lounge to see if they could talk to their new instructors and then walk around the school a little bit to get an idea of where everyone was so that they could easily visit each other before or after classes. 

“Wow!” Himi whistled while looking around. “This place makes me feel like I am an ant in a doll house! Everything is huge!”

As they walked down the hallways the new students marveled at the building. The school had a modern office feel to it, with its matte grey walls, basic blue trim and doors several meters tall. The windows to their right were large as well, leaving no gap between the floor and ceiling. Eventually they reached a door that was labeled “Teachers’ lounge” and knocked before entering.

The interior of the room was nearly covered wall to wall with bookshelves filled to the brim with binders of various colors. The two siblings gawked at the binders in slight envy and Ire’zuk made a mental note to ask his guardians for some new shelves and binders for his side of the room. In the center of the room were large grey desks facing each other, each one had a computer monitor and several binders labeled with different subjects. At the ends of the room facing towards the desks sat a three person couch with an oddly shaped pillow the color of a banana. Ire’zuk gazed over the strange lump and continued to inspect the room from the door; the room despite being filled with so many interesting items, was devoid of any teachers. 

“I don’t think anyone is here guys we could check one of the other lounges...” Himi said with a small frown on her face. “Or we could wait outside the door for someone to show up? I mean we will most likely run into...” she turned her gaze towards the pillow and let out a strangled ‘eep’ as the three students watched it wiggle then unzip revealing a man’s face. 

“You’re too loud, it's annoying.” The man then pulled out a juice pouch from somewhere inside, what Ire’zuk now realized was a sleeping bag, and drank from it. “If you have come here to fan over the teachers then I will escort you off the school grounds and have you all expelled.”

Ire’zuk gulped at that, his mind running a mile a minute as he tried his best to figure out who this man might be to claim such authority. He knew the safest, and most likely best option, was truth and from the look on Himi’s face he could tell she was thinking the same thing. Hitoshi on the other hand had a somewhat starstruck gaze as he looked at the man in the sleeping bag. 

Ire’zuk’s eyes widened for a moment when he fully saw who was in front of them. The man’s face looked scruffy and unkempt as if he had just collapsed onto the couch after a long day at work, despite it not even beginning. He also had large bags under his bloodshot eyes, a sign that the man got little sleep in general which bothered Ire’zuk for some reason. The man let out a sigh as he began to unzip the sleeping bag he was in. Ire’zuk’s breath quickened and he couldn’t help the hiss of air that passed between his teeth as he stared at a near identical copy of his father, Zagriel. His watered slightly as he watched the man step out of his sleeping bag. Everything from the man’s dark hair to his exhausted deminor screamed of his father's presences. Yet, when he reached out with his own angelic energy he felt nothing, no hum of godly power, no knowing smirk from this man. He felt nothing, this person was a mortal man, a sloppy recreation of a painful memory. 

Ire’zuk straightened his shoulders and looked at the man with confidence. He locked up his despair and disappointment in the back of his mind, hiding it so he could address this stranger properly. He may have been rude in waking this gentleman up but he did not believe he broke any rule when it came to asking for help. “We are sorry to disturb you sir. We were hoping to talk to one of the teachers quickly before the teacher meeting in order to set up an appointment?”

The man sat up and gingerly climbed out of his impromptu bed. As he did so he glared at the children in a cold calculating manner that made Ire’zuk feel like he was being assessed like a prized show dog. When he stepped closer Ire’zuk could feel an ache in his eyes and his hands twitched slightly as strings of pain emanating from this man's own eyes began to form. 

As the man walked over Ire’zuk could feel the irritation in his eyes grow stronger and it took everything in his power not to reach out and alleviate that itch. 

“What would this appointment be about exactly?” The man growled.

Himi, noticing her brother's distress and Hitoshi’s star-struck condition, stepped forward. “We tend to arrive at school early and want to see if it was possible to have access to some sort of gym or training area? We are not one hundred percent sure what kind of facilities the school has and wanted to see if we’d have permission to access something like that. Also my friend Hitoshi...” She lightly jabbed her friend in the ribs forcing him to close his mouth. “Was wondering about transfer opinions. His quirk isn’t really that great against the robots in the test and was, in my opinion, wrongly placed in general studies.” She then looked over to Ire’zuk, rolled her eyes then let out a sigh. “Would it be ok if my brother looked at your eyes? He won't be very talkative unless he heals them.”

The man stared at the three children with a raised eyebrow then at Ire’zuk who was trying his best not to touch the man’s face in order to heal him. He had barely noticed his sister talking as the man’s pain shot off him in waves. It was nothing like the pain he felt when he first met Hitoshi or All Might, but it still ached in his bones as if he felt like a baby again walking through the mud. 

“I recognize you from the entrance exam.” The man said in a low tone. He leaned in closer forcing Ire’zuk to look him in the eye. “You gave power-loader quite the headache.”

Ire’zuk blinked for a moment forcing himself to place the pain he felt in the box alongside his distress. “Well when you don’t have a strong combative quirk you have to think outside the box.” He said in a strained tone.

The man once again looked at him appraisingly before giving a small nod. “I will inform the Principal of your request, since I arrive at the school early for my morning nap I am most likely going to be the one to supervise your little morning routine.” 

The siblings gaped at him for a moment while Hitoshi sucked in a breath. 

“You’re Midoriya correct?” The man was still looking at Ire’zuk as he said this and based on how he spoke Ire’zuk knew he was still addressing him.

“Yes sir.”

“I am curious about your quirks healing ability, I will allow you to heal me. Just don’t make a habit about it.”

Ire’zuk let out a sigh of relief as he reached for the man’s face pausing before he actually touched waiting for some form of consent. When the man once again raised his eyebrow, Ire'zuk frowned and placed a couple of fingers on either side of the man’s temple. When he closed his eyes Ire’zuk could feel the irritation began to build beneath his eyelids as he pushed his energy further into the man. Eventually he tightened the loose threads and moistened the man’s heavy dry eye, he even left some of his energy behind to keep them from drying out for the rest of the day. 

When Ire’zuk opened his eyes he let out a hiss of irritation as the light seemed ten times brighter in the room than it did a few moments ago. “Thank you sir. I’ve gotten better at keeping out others' pain but it is hard when there are only a few people in a room.”

The man let out a hum of understanding as he stood up straighter. “I will lead you to the training room you will most likely be using.”

The children backed up as he led them down several hallways, all of which looked nearly identical. When they finally reached their destination the man looked down at the three students with a bored expression and slid the door open. 

“This is training room three. Don’t overdo it, I get enough of a scolding from Recovery Girl as it is.” The man grumbled as he pulled out his sleeping bag. He sat down in the corner and slid back inside his yellow atrocity yawning the entire time. “You have fifteen minutes before I have to leave for my teacher meeting, do what you want then head to class.”

The children grinned at each other as they raced into the room already mapping out new paths for their indoor parkour practice. 

* * *

Ire’zuk sat in his new classroom waiting for the other students to arrive. To say he was excited was an understatement, he was practically vibrating from the anticipation. Today would be the day he would take the first steps to becoming an adventurer in this new world. It took him many years but he was finally here and he was going to do everything in his power to set things right. 

He looked up when he heard the door slide open and the boy with the engine leg quirk walked in promptly at eight thirty seven. The boy, who Ire’zuk remembered had said his name was Tenya, looked startled as he noticed Ire’zuk. 

“You’re Midoryia, from the entrance exam. You knew there was something more to the entrance exam, didn't you? I must apologize I misjudged you back then.”

Ire’zuk felt his face stiffen slightly as he heard his false name. “Please, call me... Izuku. We fought together and that makes us friends.”

Tenya looked pensive for a moment before nodding and placing his fist in his open palm. “In that case call me by my given name Tenya. I must admit it will be strange hearing someone other than my family call me by my given name but I will do my best.”

Ire’zuk smirked slightly before leaning back in his seat. “Thank you, I just don’t like the formality of calling people by their last name. It feels strange. To what you said earlier, I had no idea there was anything remotely like rescue points in the exam.”

Tenya who had sat down when Ire’zuk was talking seemed to jolt at that statement. “Then why did you try to stop that huge machine! It could have seriously hurt any one of us and you had us charge right in?”

Ire’zuk smiled towards his new friend. “Because it was the right thing to do. You saw what it did to the buildings. The exam may have been a test but we are asked to treat it like a real threat. We are going to be heroes and heroes try their best to stop disasters in any way possible. I was just lucky to have figured out the machinery's weakness.”

Tenya nodded and turned in his seat, a contemplative look on his face as they waited for the rest of the class to enter. 

When Bakugo walked in Ire’zuk wasn’t surprised to see that the boy had passed the entrance exam and wasn’t surprised when the boy attempted to goad Tenya into an argument by putting his feet up on the desk. It was his personality after all, aggressive and combative. However, he did notice the boy’s words were not as harsh as they could have been and Ire’zuk felt a sliver of hope that the boy might be changing. Despite being personally attacked, if some of his scars had any say in the matter, the ex-adventurer still believed there was hope for the kid in the future and wanted to see him grow. After all Mirai gave him a chance, it would be hypocritical of Ire’zuk not to give Bakugo one as well. 

Ire’zuk was pleased to see his two other friends Ochaco and Mezo were in his class too, and he gave both a friendly wave as they entered. They were all disappointed when they discovered they were not sitting next to each other but Ire’zuk remarked that they would be able to walk to class together which seemed to pacify them. 

A few moments later the same man who escorted Ire’zuk to the training room earlier that day walked into the classroom. The ex-adventurer felt this throat close up at the retaliation that this man was most likely his homeroom teacher. The man’s sudden appearance caused a visceral reaction of shock and confusion to pass through the class. Whispers of,  _ who is he, he looks homeless, _ and,  _ is he really a teacher _ , echoed in the small room as he stepped towards the podium. He sent a withered look towards his new students before slapping his paperwork onto the podium.

“You’re too noisy and time is limited. You children need to be more rational. My name is Shota Aizawa and I will be your homeroom teacher.” He grumbled as he reached into his sleeping bag to pull out a set of school issued gym clothes. “I know it’s sudden but put these on and go out into the field.” 

* * *

Everyone was nervous as they stepped out of the changing room to head outside. There was nervous chatter among all the students and Ire’zuk felt the urge to roll his eyes. This was a hazing ritual of some kind he could feel it. In the old world at the monastery they did everything they could to test the endurance of the new recruits. Whatever this was, Ire'zuk had a feeling it was meant to weed out the weak from the strong, not quirk wise but, in conviction. 

“I wonder what we will be doing.” Ochaco mused as she walked beside Ire’zuk.

“Whatever it is I hope we don’t miss Student Orientation.” Tenya chimed in from Ire’zuk’s other side.

Ire’zuk shook his head. “We probably will but I am sure it is for a good reason. I think Mr. Aizawa will be one of those strict yet flexible teachers. He had that kind of air about him when Sis and I wanted to talk about training before school started.”

Tenya looked shocked at Ire’zuks statement. “You did what?”

“You guys are welcome to join us if you want. I am just waiting for permission from the Principal. Mr. Aizawa said he would talk to him for me since he will most likely be the one to supervise us.”

Ire’zuk smiled at his friends as he invited them. Despite being from a different world it felt nice to feel some form of comradery. He sighed as memories from his old life washed over him, his time at the monastery, working alongside his fellow monks to heal the weak and helpless. When he first arrived there he was bright eyed and aggressive; drifting from one excitement to the next, like a fiery spark. Yet he had found purpose there. He hadn’t given up hope of finding his old family and a way back home yet it didn’t prevent him from building friendships, albeit temporary ones, in the here and now. 

“A quirk assessment test?!” 

The shout startled Ire’zuk out of his musings to watch his fellow students stare at their teacher in surprise. 

“What about the entrance ceremony? The orientation?” Ochaco questioned in a nervous tone.

Mr. Aizawas back was turned to the group, yet they could see him roll his shoulders and Ire’zuk felt like if he was able to see his face the teacher would have been rolling his eyes as well.

“If you are to become a hero, you don't have time for such leasurely events. U. A.’s selling point is how unrestricted its school traditions are. That’s also how teachers run their classes.” The teacher holds up a PDA with a list of different physical assessment tests. “You have been doing these since junior high right? Physical fitness tests where you were not allowed to use your quirks? The country still uses averages taken from students not using their abilities. It's not rational. Today you will be putting your quirks to the test. You are allowed to use your quirks in all of these exercises to gauge your maximum potential.”

Ire’zuk could feel it; the other shoe was about to drop. He looked around at his classmates as they all perked up at what the teacher was saying. They began vocalizing their excitement and interest in the test. Many calling it fun and a chance to use their quirks in exciting ways. Looking back at their teacher he knew instantly they were saying was the wrong thing in front of this pro. The man looked like a maniac as he pushed back his hair and truly showed the students a full view of his face. 

_ This is it _ Ire’zuk thought,  _ this is where his hazing begins... _

“You have three years to become heroes. Will you have an attitude like this the whole time? All right then,” the man grinned and Ire’zuk felt a true wave of terror pass through him at the sight of his smile, it was almost like looking at Himi when she was about to take down an unsuspecting victim, “whoever comes in last place in all eight tests will be judged to have no potential and will be punished with expulsion. We are allowed to do what we want about the fate of our students.” Aizawa smirked, “Welcome to the U.A.’s hero course.”

The reaction was instant and Ire’zuk couldn’t help but mentaly laugh a little. This man just used fear to motivate his students to do their best and he had to admit it was working a little, even on him . If his threat was true then it was in a way a mercy. It is better to leave now and try your hand somewhere else rather than be trained in a field you would most likely dislike. Not many people have a choice in becoming heroes, he knows he was never given that chance. 

“The last place will be expelled?” Ochaco called out in panic. “But it’s the first day of school! No, even if it wasn’t the first day, this is too unfair!”

Ire’zuk placed a hand on his friend's shoulder, he felt a wave of sadness wash over him. His friends were too naive, or perhaps he was too cynical, he wasn’t sure. “Life isn’t fair Ochaco.” He said gently, his voice soft as if trying to comfort a crying child. “No matter where you go life is always trying to kick someone to the ground. Be it villain or storm. This is probably the best wakeup call we can be given. It is better to know the potential unfairness now rather than later when someone’s life is in your hands.”

His teacher looked at Ire’zuk critically before nodding in agreement. “Natural disasters, big accidents, and selfish villains. Calamities whose time and place cannot be predicted. Japan is covered in unfairness. Heroes are the ones who reverse those situations. If you wanted to go talk to your friends at some fast food joint after school you have come to the wrong school. For the next three years U.A. will do all it can to give you one hardship after another. Go beyond. Plus Ultra. Overcome it with all you’ve got.”

Everyone's determination grew tenfold when the speech was over and they all prepared to take the tests. Ire’zuk could almost feel it hanging in the air. The “threat” of expulsion was pushing everyone to their own mental breaking point. He didn’t let it bother him too much, even if the teacher did expel someone, that person could still get the chance to be a hero at another school. He, however, wouldn’t let that be him. He didn’t want to leave this school after all, he had family here and new friends whom he wanted to look after. No, he would take this hazing seriously because he didn’t want to end up losing what he worked so hard to obtain. 

As he predicted he did well in the tests that required speed and agility to finish them. He surprised many of his classmates when he was able to bend in half during the toe touch test without so much as a pained expression and even surprised himself in the long distance run when he came in fourth behind the girl with an interestingly stylized ponytail. He had used ki to keep himself at peak physical condition during nearly every test, to the point where he accidentally dislocated his shoulder temporarily during the ball throw. He had gotten around one hundred and thirty meters with the throw and an angry look from his teacher. Ire’zuk assumed the man was thinking the ex-adventure would ask to leave to go to the nurse and sit out the rest of the tests. 

Ire’zuk proved him wrong however by simply relocating his shoulder without so much as a peep and went back in line after completing his test. He has endured worse pain than a simple dislocated shoulder. After all that is how he got most of the scars that littered his body, he wouldn’t break from some simple physical fitness. 

By the time it was all said and done Ire’zuk placed eighteenth while an invisible girl and a boy with purple grape looking hair took the nineteenth and twentieth place respectively. When the results were shown the boy with purple hair looked scared and forlorn, quietly crying about unfair rules. To Ire’zuk’s amusement the boy barely caught the teacher's next words.

“By the way, I was lying about the expulsion.” The man once again grinned wickedly, sending more shivers down Ire’zuk’s spine. “It was a rational deception to draw out the upper limits of your quirks.”

The students called out in surprise and anger at the statement causing Ire’zuk to laugh quietly. 

Mezo who was standing near Ire’zuk looked at him with confusion. “Izuku, did you know?”

Ire’zuk smiled slightly and shrugged. “I thought it might have been a lie but I still treated it as if it wasn’t because if it turned out he was telling the truth then I didn’t want to leave my new friends.”

The masked boy smiled slightly towards Ire’zuk then turned his gaze towards the others. 

* * *

Ire’zuk let out a sigh as he waited by the school’s entrance for his sister and friends. He was happily surprised when he didn’t see Bakugo waiting there to harass him. It had been an eventful yet tiring day. After the surprise test, Aizawa had pulled Ire’zuk aside and told him the principal had given the boy permission to use the training grounds under the supervision of his homeroom teacher. The man wasn’t happy to learn that he had extended the invitation to three of his other classmates but smirked while saying something about already pushing his friends beyond their limits. 

Ire’zuk felt his hip buzz as his phone was receiving a call from a number he didn’t recognize. He opened up his phone in confusion, hoping it was simply a wrong number or perhaps one of his new friends. What he heard made his blood freeze and, his vision dimmed for a moment listened to the all too familiar voice on the other end of the line. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello hello my little dice goblins!
> 
> I know I have said this before but, I hope you have been enjoying the story so far. It has been a blast writing it and I already have up to chapter 9 roughly written.
> 
> The next chapter upload (chapter 7 technically chapter 6) will be ready to publish 3/1/21 no later than 7:00pm eastern. All chapters be published on the first of every month around 7 pm eastern.
> 
> Some post chapter notes!
> 
> I'm getting surgery in the middle of this month! Don't worry this wont change the story's update schedule at all. I am super nervous but I am also excited. I hope everyone is staying safe during the crazy past year and a half. 
> 
> I hope you have a wonderful day/night wherever you are!
> 
> Your lovely,  
>  DnD Otaku


	7. Chapter 6: Reconnecting

“This is Mirai Sasaki, whoever you are I thank you for sending All Might to me. When he visited he told me of a promise he needed to keep and gave me this number saying you were a friend who was looking to reconnect. With whom am I speaking?”

Ire’zuk couldn’t breath, didn’t dare speak for fear of scaring his oldest friend. It was as if the sound of his voice rattled around Ire’zuk’s skull like a loose pebble. He didn’t know what to say, what could he say to a man he hadn’t seen in over fourteen years; maybe even more for Mirai. 

“Hello, are you still there? Are you in danger?” Mirai’s concerned voice once again echoed in Ire’zuk’s mind as the ex-adventurer finally pulled his thoughts together enough to respond.

Ire’zuk took a deep breath before letting out a shuttered. “N-no, sorry I am just overwhelmed.” He straightened his spine in an attempt to gain some composure. “ Hello Sir, you do know me? Though this language probably makes my voice sound weird.  _ If I speak like this would you know me? _ ” 

Ire’zuk could hear Mirai suck in a breath on the other end then some soft counting. “ _ Of course, it all makes sense now. Ire’zuk is that you? You were the only one who spoke celestial so freely. _ ”

Ire’zuk’s grin grew even wider as he heard his old friend use the very first language Ire’zuk taught him. It made his heart beat in a way he thought never thought would be possible again. It sang of friendship, of a hard days work rewarded with a glass of ale, it sang of home, family.

“ _ You probably know but, I have waited so long to hear your voice again. I have missed you old friend. _ ”

“ _ I have missed you as well. What of the others? Zome, Eris, Himi, Inasa? _ ”

Ire’zuk shook his head before swallowing slightly. “ _ Himi is with me, we were found and adopted by a family in this strange new world. As for the others I don’t know. _ ”

“ _ You got part of that statement correct my friend. We are in a strange place, yet this isn’t a new world or at least not in the form I think you are referring to. _ ” Ire’zuk felt his brows furrow slightly as he heard his friend continue. “ _ You know before the battle I cast clone on all of us. It was to ensure that if Eris’ death ward spell failed we still live to fight on. Well, it is safe to say it took longer than the one hundred and twenty days for gestation. _ ”

Mirai let out a long breath and Ire’zuk heard the man writing some things down. “ _ I-I thought I was alone here in this time. I thought I would never hear someone speak to me in this language ever again. Forgive me, _ ” Ire’zuk could hear hiccups on the other end of the line and the sound of a tissue being blown. “ _ Ire’zuk I want to explain more but it would feel wrong of me not to make an effort to look for our other companions now that I have hope of finding them in this world. I have the money and resources to do so and I should be using them, within reason. I am a hero now in this new time after all. I took an oath of sorts to keep this strange new time safe from any looming threats. Knowing you, you are already on the track to become one yourself. You always were the type to want to save others despite all the odds stacked against you. I will call again and when I do I hope it will be one where we can all meet again as a family. _ ”

Ire’zuk made a noise of confirmation, his mouth refusing to work any more. As he choked, he heard his sister and friend Hitoshi calling out to him.

Himi, the bright light in his troubled life, was smiling towards Ire’zuk with warm affection which soon transformed into something darker as she got closer. “Izuku! Hey, Zu? Why are you crying?”

Ire’zuk touched his face and his fingers felt moist as he pulled them away from his cheek, he barely registered when his sister pulled the phone away from his hand. Her face was murderous as she spoke lowly into the phone. “I don’t know who you are but you better have a goo- oh, there’s no one there.” She then turned to her little brother who was still silently weeping. “What’s wrong Zu? Are you ok, did someone hurt you?”

Ire’zuk took a deep breath and shook his head.  _ “I couldn't be better.” _

* * *

Ire’zuk sighed in frustration during his English class. He already knew English thanks to his adopted parents teaching him when he was younger. They wanted bilingual children and the siblings were quick to please their caretakers in any way possible, taking to the new language like fish to water. It also helped that English was very close to what common was before they were reborn into this new time. 

That was another thing Ire’zuk had to wrap his head around now. The knowledge that not only were they reborn but in a sense sent forward in time. Mirai wasn’t able to or didn’t want to explain how this occurred but Ire’zuk feared it had to do with Sy-gar’s Wish. Whatever it was, it destroyed the world he knew and placed them all in this strange new yet not so new world. This knowledge gave Ire’zuk new hope. If everyone survived whatever happened to them then perhaps there was a way for all of them to return.

Ire Zuk watched their English teacher leave with a satisfied smile on his face and a little skip in his step. He looked down at his desk to see a small stack of homework for him to complete and groaned. He barely paid attention and now would pay the price. He was lucky that Ochaco was willing to share what was needed for the next day or he would have missed a day's worth of classes. His head was not in the game this morning and all his friends knew it. He was barely paying attention when the bell for lunch was called and the other students got up to head to the enormous cafeteria two floors down. 

When Ire’zuk sat down at a table with Mezo, Ochaco and Tenya he heard a shout of mock betrayal behind him followed by a soft huff of amusement. 

“Zu! You don’t want to have lunch with us? I’m hurt!” The tell-tale voice of his sister cried out. 

“I always knew he would leave us one day Himi.” Hitoshi followed up with a sigh of defeat. 

Ire’zuk’s other friends looked towards him in confusion as he laughed quietly. He shook his head and turned around to see his other friend and sister standing behind him with their own trays of food. 

“You are welcome to join us, in fact please do I want to introduce you guys.”

Himi smiled smugly as if she won a contest and plopped down next to Ochaco leaning into her close to stare at her face. She smiled warmly at the girl before turning to the others to give them the same kind of treatment. Hitoshi meanwhile walked over and sat next to Mezo keeping his head down and posture defensive. 

“I like you guys already! You have such open and honest faces it is kind of adorable.” She looked towards Mezo and gave him a wink. “I am also liking the ninja vibe you are giving off there.”

Ire’zuk sighed at the slightly uncomfortable and embarrassed looks he new friends had and waved towards Hitoshi and Himi.

“Everyone, this is Himi, my older sister and my friend Hitoshi. We met before taking the entrance exam.”

Ochaco smiled at the two new faces as she gave a little wave. “It is nice to meet you guys! Izuku I know you said you had a sister but I didn’t realize she'd be so... enthusiastic?”

The other two boys nodded at this and looked towards the bubbly blond with interest. 

Ire’zuk blushed, he felt slightly self conscious as if not instantly telling his new friends about his other connections was something to be ashamed of. “Well we only just met but I figured you’d eventually get introduced to both of them. Considering Himi and I are practically inseparable after school and Hitoshi has unofficially been adopted into my family as well.”

“Like you’d be able to stop her. She practically hounded me until I broke down and agreed to be her friend. It was quite an ordeal. I have trauma now.” Hitoshi gumbled in a serious tone to which Himi laughed off like he was telling the best joke.

“You say the sweetest things Hitoshi!” She turned to Ire’zuk’s other friends with curiosity. “Zu said that after all the boring stuff you guys will be doing Hero Training! I am so envious, you get to work with All Might! He’s like a goliath or something.”

The others nodded in agreement as they all dug into their lunch, talking every once and a while about what they were expecting in their upcoming classes. 

* * *

Ire’zuk felt the pulsing pain before All Might’s boisterous shouts could be heard. He felt more attuned to the man’s pain since he had healed him once before. It was odd, feeling the man’s wounds still creaking in the background of his overwhelming presence. A presence that despite being on full display as he burst through the door in a dramatic fashion felt weaker for some reason. It made Ire’zuk furrow his brow slightly as he looked at the hero before him. 

“Let’s get right into it! Today’s class will be BATTLE TRAINING!” The man pulled out a PDA with the word ‘BATTLE!’ displayed on it. His smile never left his face as he pointed towards the wall and several lines of cases popped out of the wall. “To go with today's training will be these! Your costumes based off of your quirk registrations!” He placed his hands on his hips in a dramatic fashion as he watched his students slowly grab their number from off the wall. “Now I want you to all get changed and meet me at Ground Beta.”

Ire’zuk stared down at his case with a nervous quiver in his stomach. He remembered what he had submitted all those months ago but he never really thought about it until this moment. Would it feel like it used to in his old time? A comforting wrap of cloth and metal to keep himself protected from his enemies or would it feel constricting, like this new time.

Ire’zuk followed the other male students to the locker rooms to change only to not find any showers for him to change into here. The other room they had used during their hazing ritual had showers to help those who worked up a sweat during gym class. Ire’zuk swallowed, he wasn’t ashamed of his body but he was aware of how his scars scared others. In his old life he would have shown his scars off proudly, a sign of his strength. Yet here in this world he covered them up in an attempt to make those around him comfortable. He considered himself lucky that most of his facial scars were hidden under his hair and only a couple of them were exposed to the sun; mostly his lower jaw and mouth region. 

With a sigh Ire’zuk put his case down on the bench, he closed his eyes for a moment trying his best to steady his breathing before taking the plunge and putting his new hero uniform on. After all, his costume put a large portion of his scars on display. He held the simple robes between his fingers: Just looking at it he knew it would expose his chest and shoulders. The color of which was a soft cream with the ends of the cloth dipped in red. He had requested for long strips of to be made for him dyed the same blood red as the cloth which he would wrap around his arms, wrists and legs. Finally, he had a replica of his holy symbol to his grandfather made. It didn’t do anything beneficial to his costume but it was a comfort to slip it over his head and press the beads between his fingers.

When he heard the first gasp when he opened his shirt and he knew someone saw. He straightened his shoulders in an act of defence. 

Kaminari, a boy he hadn’t gotten acquainted with yet made a noise of shock.“Oh man, Izuku I knew you got some scars from healing others but who did you heal to get all of those?”

When the yellow haired teen said this all eyes turned towards Ire’zuk with interest and the ex-adventure felt like he was twenty again showing his birth mother the first scars he had received during battle. It was a mixture of pride, embarrassment and annoyance. He knew this would happen yet he had hoped in some part of his soul that no one would say anything. 

Ire’zuk gritted his teeth and turned his face away from the other children. His face hot. “Yeah they are pretty gruesome sorry if they bother you.” 

“I don’t know man, they're pretty manly if you ask me!” The spiky red-haired boy named Kirishima said while pounding his fists together. 

Ire’zuk smiled slightly at the children's encouraging words before quickly covering a small portion of his scars back up with his hero outfit. He looked over to Mezo and Tenya who smiled encouragingly both with their eyes slightly wide at the sight of his marks. Even though he will never say it he is grateful they choose to stay quiet about it for now. He isn’t sure he is ready to open the can of worms that is his story. 

Ire’zuk frowned slightly as he once again followed the other students outside. Did he want the others to know? Sure they were his new friends in this time, but the adventurer knew it wouldn’t be long now before he and the others would be brought back to their own time. They don’t need to know his life story, they only need to know about Izuku, a young boy who desired to be a hero like them. In the end that is all they need to see. They didn’t need the burden of his secrets weighing them down.

As the group made their way towards Ground Beta Ire’zuk could feel Bakugo’s eyes on him. The explosive teen didn’t really try to hide the fact he was staring and it was beginning to bother the adventurer more than he’d care to admit. He was about to confront Bakugo when he saw All Might standing just past the archway they were walking through. 

The hero once again smiled widely at all of them proclaiming from this day forth they were heroes and that they looked cool and amazing. Ire’zuk snorted at that statement, but held any comments back from correcting what the man said. The ex-adventurer reminded himself that in this time heroes looked the way they do because of functionality and glamour. To be a well off hero one must look the part after all. 

It turned out the combat training had the students pair off in two, each pair represented either villain or hero respectively. It was a simple game of cat and mouse where the heroes were tasked with either capturing the villains or capturing the weapon they were guarding. In turn the villains were tasked with capturing the heroes preventing them from taking the weapon. 

Ire’zuk was luckily parried up with Ochaco, making this mission ten times easier in Ire’zuk’s mind. They would take whatever their classmates threw at them and throw it right back. In his relief Ire’zuk barely noticed when All Might announced the team they would be facing off. Yet when the others walked back into the observation room it was hard to deny the hard stare of Bakugo. Ire’zuk met the gaze fully with little emotion behind it before following the teacher towards their training ground.

* * *

  
  


“Do you think they expect us to memorize this floor plan? It’s so big.” Ochaco said in awe. 

Ire’zuk had put his floor plan to the side and leaned back to examine the windows on each of the floors. “I already did,” he says absentmindedly, “hey Ochaco, one of the goals is to capture the weapon correct?”

Ochaco looked at Ire’zuk with slight surprise before nodding her head. “Yeah, that is one of the objectives.” 

Ire’zuk nodded before pointing towards the alleyway next to the building. His mind was already reeling with different scenarios, ways they could win or lose, and finally the possible dangers they might encounter. “Over there is a fire escape. We could use that to get access to the roof. Using your abilities you could get us into the building without being seen, and get the weapon before time runs out. Maybe even take out Tenya before he is even aware. There is a high chance that Bakugo is going to split off and try to find us on the lower floors. If we capture Tenya and the weapon we will win the simulation. However I don’t like the idea of just leaving an unknown threat in the building so it is probably best if we capture Tenya and leave him somewhere while we go deal with Bakugo. If we have the time to do so that is.”

Ochaco starred in surprise for a few moments before letting out a small noise of awe. “Wow, you’ve really thought this through Isuku! It’s like you’ve done this kind of thing before. Are you some sort of supergenius or something?”

Ire’zuk smiled slightly while feeling himself deflate internally. He forgets sometimes that he looks like a child and that these thoughts that are normal for pro-hero types are new and awe inspiring to those newly initiated. “I-I wouldn’t say that, I have just wanted to be a hero all my life. Ever since I was a little kid I knew that I was going to change the world. So I studied as much as I could in order to give myself any advantage, considering my quirk is not that strong on its own.” It wasn’t a complete lie, when he was in the past he used to get dreams of glory and lessons on strategy. His parents, his biological and those who took care of him, in the past, showed him how to survive in a war torn world. What he is discussing with Ochaco, child's play, in a sense it is considering they are either metaly, (or in his case physically) children.

“Whoah, alright! I guess that makes sense, you must have been studying strategy for a long time then. But...” she turned her head towards the building, “how do you know Bakugo will try to break off from Iida and go after us himself. Wouldn’t it make more sense for Iida to patrol since he is the faster of the two?”

Ire’zuk nodded at this. “It’s one of my passions. It would be a shame to not put this knowledge to good use.” The ex-adventurer then scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. “Bakugo and I are neighbors, he has always been aggressive and combative with everyone. I don’t know why but I think he might have felt threatened by me getting into this school?”

Ochaco frowned slightly and opened her mouth to continue talking when All Might called out over the speakers to start the training session. 

Swiftly Ire’zuk rushed over to the front door and opened it leaving it there for a few moments before shutting it loudly. He looked over towards Ochaco with a smirk and pointed silently to the alley way. The two make their way over to the alley before Ire’zuk stopped his friend. Looking at the windows Ire’zuk tested one before smiling lightly. 

“The lower windows are loose and could potentially open. We should test the window on the top level as well if it opens we’ll get a more stealthy entrance than using the fire escape door.” Ire’zuk frowned for a moment before turning his gaze towards Ochaco. “I never asked this but can you make yourself lighter as well?” 

The young girl nodded but looked queasy at the mention of such a thing. “Y-yeah, I just get really sick if I do it for too long.”

Ire’zuk smiled before gripping her waist and holding her firmly to his chest. “Well luckily you have me and I will take that away. Could you float us both up to the top?”

Ochaco was blushing furiously but nodded as she touched his bare shoulder and then her own hand. Ire’zuk’s grip on his friend tightened as he felt the world around him turn sideways and slightly dizzying. Pushing his angelic powers into his friend he preemptively connected them in order to keep her from getting sick as long as possible. Slowly their feet lifted off the ground and they began to float towards their destination. Ire’zuk kept one arm wrapped around Ochaco and the other trailing the wall by the window so he could grab it at a moment's notice. 

After about a minute of floating the two heroes in training made it to the fifth and final floor. Ire’zuk had his partner hold onto him as he carefully pulled the window open and slipped them both in. He heard Ochaco let out a deep sigh of relief when she released her powers and they both floated towards the ground. 

“There,” she whispered, “that wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. Why did you open and close the door on the first floor if you were not planning on using it?”

Ire’zuk looked around nervously keeping his eyes and ears open for any sign that her talking alerted anyone before letting out a sigh and looking towards his partner. He placed a finger in front of his lips and moved forward as quietly as possible. It was hard given their time limit but Ire’zuk tried his best to ensure that they moved swiftly through the halls without causing too much noise. As they moved through the halls Ire’zuk heard a noise coming from one of the open doors and paused. Looking back at his partner he tapped his ear while pointing towards the door. Ochaco nodded as they both leaned in to listen to what was being said by the other team.

“Bakugo, come in, give me a status report.”

There was a long pause before a frustrated cry filled the hall. “Are you forgetting what our mission is? Hello? He hung up on me! This is no time for radio silence, we’re supposed to be partners!”

Ire’zuk’s eyes widened as he heard Tenya start muttering to himself and the sound of items being moved became the most prominent noise. Quickly he grabbed Ochaco by her waist while pointing towards the ceiling. With a nod the young girl once again made the two weightless ensuring they were out of the immediate sight of the engine quirk user. They watched with bated breath as he began to quickly carry presumably every loose object out of the room he was in. Ochaco let out a hiss of frustration when Tenya was once again hidden behind the door. Ire’zuk knew why she was frustrated, she had just witnessed her friend, temporary nemesis, remove all of the objects needed to help her fight him at her best. She queasily released the two of them and they floated back down to the ground. Before she could throw up, Ire'zuk held onto her tighter and pressed his energy into her to help her turning stomach. 

After ensuring her safety, Ire’zuk tapped his partner’s hip while pointing towards his prayer beads. He had requested that his grandfather’s holy symbol be part of his hero costume originally as a way to help ground him. Yet here in this moment he knew they would work as perfect if not temporary ammo for his partner. After breaking his chain and giving her the beads he then pointed towards himself then to the ceiling once more. He hoped she knew he wanted her to make him weightless so he could sneak in from above while she did so from below. He grinned when she nodded and once again tapped his shoulder. When he began to float he then pointed towards the door and slowly made his way into the other room while crawling on the ceiling. 

He could feel Ochaco’s eyes on him as he made his way across the room and above the fake weapon they had to capture. Ire’zuk closed his eyes for a moment to get a sense of where they were time wise and knew they wouldn’t be able to capture both the villains and the weapon in the allotted time unless they did something drastic. However, Ire’zuk didn’t want to risk his partner or Tenya for that matter to Bakugo’s revenge. So instead, Ire’zuk decided he would allow the angry teen to continue his fugal search in the lower floors while he and his partner were capturing the weapon. 

“Uraraka is that you?” Tenya’s voice carried in the room, his voice was slightly higher pitched and more nasally than normal. 

Ire’zuk tilted his head as he watched his partner come out of hiding when the villain caught her laughing with her guard down.  _ Stupid _ , echoed in his thoughts for a moment before he smirked. He was technically still under his partner's quirk and Tenya didn’t know that. This gave them the advantage as Tenya slowly began walking towards Ochaco whilst monologuing. 

_ I never understood a villain's need to monologue, _ Ire’zuk let out a huff as he positioned himself just above the weapon. He watched as Ochaco took the beads she was given just a few moments ago and threw them at Tenya making him back off slightly in surprise. Ire’zuk was pleased to see she was making them float despite the twisting her stomach was producing. She quickly glanced at him before nodding and releasing her power over him. 

Beads scattered across the floor making Tenya’s ability to use his quirk dangerous while also allowing it to be a distraction for the hero's real plan. As the beads fell so too did Ire’zuk right on top of the weapon. When Tenya heard the soft thunk of flesh hitting metal he turned around to see Ire’zuk standing on the fake nuclear missile with a large grin on his face. He gestured towards his partner who in turn had grabbed Tenya, forcing him into the air. 

All Might’s voice echoed throughout the halls as he called out the victory of Ire’zuk and Ochaco. “THE HERO TEAM WINS!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello my little Dice Goblins!
> 
> I am so sorry for not uploading this on the first like I promised I was distracted and forgot. I know it is not an excuse and I will strive to do better. I hope you enjoyed the chapter. I know it is not my best work. I will try to bring myself back on track and upload once more on the first of every month. I will not pull a prank on April first so you don't need to worry there! 
> 
> Until next time my Dice Goblins!


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